US ready to work with Pakistan's new leadership: State Dept
US looks forward to working together on security, stability, and prosperity in the South Asian region: spokesperson
KARACHI/WASHINGTON: The United States looks forward to working with the new government of Pakistan and furthering the goals of security and stability in South Asia, Geo News reported Thursday night, citing the US Department of State.
"As Pakistan’s elected leaders form a new government, the United States will look for opportunities to work with them to advance our goals of security, stability, and prosperity in South Asia," a US State Department spokesperson said in a statement.
Washington will be working closely with Islamabad, given the two countries' relationship in light of the US strategy for South Asia and the issue of Afghan peace talks, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson further said the US was “concerned by reports of constraints placed on freedoms of expression, association, and the press leading up to the elections.”
Unofficial projections by various local media outlets showed Imran Khan´s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party enjoying a clear lead in the poll results.
As ecstatic PTI supporters celebrated the projected results, theoutgoing Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), which had been in power since 2013, rejected the results alleging "outright rigging" and vowing it would use "all political and legal options for redressal of these glaring excesses".