WASHINGTON: Pakistan has started to become a focus of global investment,Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal told US Senator Lindsey Graham in a meetingat the Capitol Hill Tuesday night.
Iqbal was accompanied by Ambassador to the US Aizaz Chaudhry. Graham is amember of various US Senate committees, including appropriation, armedservices, judiciary, and budget.
The two leaders talked mutual bilateral relations and the regional securitysituation. Iqbal briefed Graham on the war against terrorism as well as theNational Action Plan (NAP).
A better law and order situation has helped bump up the investments in andto Pakistan, Iqbal stressed, adding that the country is slowly becoming amajor source of foreign capital.
Further, the minister emphasised to Graham that Pakistan hopes to work withthe US for peace in Afghanistan.
On the other hand, Iqbal, while addressing a seminar on internationalgeopolitical threats in Washington, said the entire world needs to makejoint efforts to defeat the menace of terrorism.
“It is the responsibility of the US and European states to back Pakistan inits efforts for peace.”
The minister said all other options — other than the one based oncooperation — lead to chaos. Terrorist groups have evolved intointernational networks and security threats are no longer regional, headded.
Iqbal noted that Pakistan lost 60,000 lives in the fight against terrorism,besides financial losses worth Rs 120 billion.
“Pakistani forces conducted four million search raids, over 2.1 millioncombing operations, and over 16,000 intelligence-based operations acrossthe country,” Iqbal elaborated.
Pakistan broke the backbone of terrorism over the last four years, he said,adding that the success against militants was achieved through coordinationamong all institutions and forces.
The minister observed that the United States could only succeed through apolicy based on unity and cooperation, while tension in relations betweenthe two nations would benefit terrorists.
Iqbal flew out Sunday from Islamabad for a visit to the US, Mexico, the UKand Norway. He would hold meetings with the leaders of these countries onvarious issues of mutual importance, according to a press release from theministry.
Iqbal will apprise them about Pakistan’s efforts and achievements in thewar against terror. – INP