UK expresses concerns over US-Pakistan deadlock

UK expresses concerns over US-Pakistan deadlock

Islamabad: (Tuesday, June 12, 2012) British Foreign Secretary William Hague here today has expressed concerns over the persistent deadlock between Pakistan and the United States over the reopening of the NATO supplies to Afghanistan.

Pakistan closed its borders for the NATO supplies passage to neighbouring country after US air strikes on Salala check posts in November last year killed 24 Pakistan soldiers. Following the incident, the US had the audacity to
refuse to formally apologies over the deaths of the Pakistani soldiers.

Yesterday, following the humiliating statement by Leon Panetta and offered cold shoulder by the Pakistan military chief General Ashfaq Parvaiz Kayani, the United States low-level technocrat negotiators realized that their half
hearted efforts to get Pakistan open the border have failed, and they decided to leave the country.

Commenting upon the situation which is not going to benefit either of the countries, the visiting British minister said, “We look to the United States and Pakistan to work successfully together and of greater concern to us, even
than those lines of communication, would be a rift between the United States and Pakistan.”

Hague said that he had raised the issue with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani as well as with the Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, and he was hopeful of both sides to find a workable solution to the lingering problem.

Adding to his remarks Hague said that the UK wished for the issue to be resolved. He said, “Obviously we want this issue to be resolved and of course we raised it and discussed it today.”

The withdrawal of the US negotiators has signaled further strain in the mutual relations following the criticism from US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta that culminated in Pakistan’s chief of Army Staff refusing to meet a Pentagon
official.

Believing that they were close to striking a deal, the US negotiators had been in Pakistan for about six weeks.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=25564

Posted by Fayyaz Yaseen on Jun 12 2012. Filed under Latest News, Pakistan, USA. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry