On May 17, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will make his first trip to the United States as a federal minister.
Asim Iftikhar, the spokesperson for the Foreign Office, confirmed the development during the weekly press briefing on Thursday. He stated that Foreign Minister Bilawal will meet with Secretary of State Tony Blinken on May 18, in addition to holding important meetings with senior US officials.
In response to a question, the spokesperson stated that an important meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) counter-terrorism experts would be hosted by India on May 15 in New Delhi. A delegation of senior FO officials and experts would be in attendance.
Iftikhar added that Pakistan desired a substantive conversation with India.
The FO spokesperson once more urged the new Afghan government not to allow its territory to be used against Pakistan and to take action against all terrorist groups, including the TTP, without discrimination.
Pakistan, he concluded, seeks friendship with all its neighbors, including India, but it is New Delhi’s responsibility to foster an atmosphere conducive to productive dialogue.
The nation’s youngest foreign minister finally took his oath of office as a federal minister for the first time last month, at a time when the country faces multiple challenges on the international front.
The 33-year-old followed in the footsteps of his grandfather, the 35-year-old foreign minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. President Arif Alvi administered the oath while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, and other coalition government members were present.
