Sartaj Aziz, US Kerry discuss ties

National Security adviser, Sartaj Aziz and US Secretary of State, John Kerry met in Brunei and discussed bilateral cooperation in the post 2014 period, the Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

The two leaders met on the sidelines the 20th Ministerial Meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Brunei Darussalam.

The Adviser emphasized the need for holding the next round of Strategic Dialogue at Ministerial level between the two countries, a Foreign Ministry statement said.

“The Strategic Dialogue process provides an institutional mechanism to strengthen bilateral relations action in several areas through different working groups,” Aziz said, adding Pakistan is looking forward to Secretary John Kerry’s visit to Pakistan.

The Adviser to Prime Minister also highlighted that the main focus of the foreign policy of the newly elected government will be economic revival and socio- economic development.

The two sides must make efforts to increase trade from the current level of US dollars 5 billion to dollar 10 billion in the next five years. The Adviser also stressed the need for greater market access to Pakistani exports to the United States.

Secretary John Kerry appreciated new government’s focus on the economy and said he accepted in that context the importance of greater market access for Pakistan’s exports to USA. He emphasized that improved law and order was also necessary for economic revival and larger foreign investment.

Sartaj Aziz expressed the hope that the two sides would be able to have a comprehensive discussion for cooperation in several areas during the upcoming visit of Secretary Kerry to Pakistan later in the month.

This was the first high level interaction between the two Foreign Ministers in which both sides agreed to work jointly for a fruitful and positive relationship.

Mr. Sartaj Aziz, Adviser to the Prime Minister on National Security and Foreign Affairs met  Secretary of State John Kerry today (2 July 2013)

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Posted by Tahir Khan on Jul 2 2013. Filed under Latest News, National, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.