Sherry Rehman for end to US drone strikes in farewell address

Pakistan’s outgoing ambassador to the United States Sherry Rehman has urged the U.S. to end drone strikes in the tribal areas in order to help put the relationship on sustained upward trajectory.

Sherry Rehman resigned from her post this week after defeat of her Pakistan Peoples Party in the May 11 election.

On drone strikes, she noted  that this kind of footprint roils anti-American discontent and fuels the “cognitive disconnect” between the two nations.

“This is one thing that has to change if we are ever to be sanguine that we are on the path to an upward bilateral trajectory,” state news agency quoted the ambassador as telling a gathering of senior American officials and Pakistani-Americans in Washington.

She said terrorism is very much Pakistan’s problem too and the people of her country have been bravely fighting it as proved by the May 11 election.
She also highlighted the need for the two countries to acknowledge each other’s roles in the good work they do.
“I take this opportunity to say to the people of the United States, stand by our side as you have done so many times in history. But stand by us as long term friends, for the right reasons, and we can achieve many breakthroughs together.”
The ambassador praised the team of Pakistani diplomats for their dedicated work in helping the two countries navigate some very turbulent waters and onerous challenges in the relationship, APP reported.
Ambassador Sherry said as she leaves her post, she has the satisfaction of knowing that Pakistan and the US “are on the cusp of a new normal, a less hyberpolic relationship, but one founded as much on the sustainable continuum of shared democratic values instead of only the sharp, edge of  strategic compulsions.”
Speaking on the occasion, Deputy US Special Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan David Pearce appreciated Ambassador Sherry’s diplomatic efforts towards improvement in bilateral relations, saying she has “played a key role in helping us rebuild the relationship between the two countries following a very difficult period in 2011-12.”
“Thanks in no small part to your dedication and efforts that the two countries are in a much better place than they were 18 months ago,” he noted.

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Posted by Tahir Khan on May 18 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.