Trump administration aware of Pakistan’s issues: Jilani

WASHINGTON DC: Pakistan Ambassador to the UN, Jalil Jilani said the administration of US President-elect Donald Trump was aware of the issues faced by Pakistan.

Addressing a New Year Luncheon at the Pakistani Embassy for correspondents of print and electronic media on Saturday, Jilani said Islamabad wanted to strengthen bilateral relations with the US.  Ambassador Jilani expressed hope that Pak-US cooperation would be further strengthened in the fight against terrorism by revisiting sale of F-16s and Coalition Fund issues.

The ambassador also spoke of there being no organised presence of Daesh within Pakistan, however, the country is concerned over growing influence of the militant groups presence in Afghanistan.

Ambassador Jilani said that over the last few years, the terrorist incidents in Pakistan had reduced significantly by 70 percent, further adding that Pakistan Stock Market has surpassed the other markets in the region.

He contended that the emergence of extremist and violent organisations was the outcome of instability and violence all over the world.

On Indus Water Treaty, Ambassador Jilani said Pakistan had requested the World Bank to play the role of an administrator in terms of the legal and technical objections raised by Pakistan on Kishan Ganga and Ratle hydropower projects in India. However, India had requested for an appointment of a neutral expert.

“Pakistan believes that the mandate of a neutral expert was limited,” he said.

He reiterated that Pakistan would like to engage in a sustained, meaningful dialogue with India in order to resolve all the outstanding issues peacefully.