Islamabad, 16 February 2022 (TDI): In an interview with the French newspaper Le Figaro, Pakistani Prime Minister, Imran Khan has talked about the bilateral relationship between Pakistan and the United States, especially their role in the Afghan crisis.
“We will partner with the US in peace, not in conflict,”
Prime Minister @ImranKhanPTI‘s Interview to @Le_Figaro, France pic.twitter.com/7dvMMJUyly
— Prime Minister’s Office, Pakistan (@PakPMO) February 15, 2022
He said that Pakistan will always be ready to be a part of any peace process in Afghanistan as peace in Afghanistan is essential for stability in Pakistan. Khan has been criticizing the Pakistani decision to be a part of the US-led war on terror, particularly in Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks.
According to Khan, he criticizes only some aspects of the relation between Pakistan and the United States, and not the whole cooperation. He said that he has always believed that the military solution won’t work in Afghanistan.
This is, according to him the biggest aspect of Pak-US relations he criticizes. He stated that the US has been confused about the situation in Afghanistan since the beginning. The Americans never had any clear aims or targets to achieve in Afghanistan, which the present situation proves.
The power is in the hands of the same group which the US was supposed to be fighting against for the last 20 years. The Pakistani Prime Minister said that there has been a feeling in the Pakistani mindset of being used and then betrayed by the US.
He stated that almost 80,000 Pakistanis have been a victim of the US war on terror in Afghanistan, and yet only Pakistan is to be blamed by the US and the West. This is what has always happened in Pak-US relations.
To the question of Pakistan being part of any cooperation with the US in the future in the region, Khan said that Pakistan is willing to be a part of any peace process.
Regarding Afghanistan, he said that “Pakistan will partner with the US in peace, not in conflict”. That too is possible only after the permission by the new Taliban government in Afghanistan to be a part of the peace process.
Imran Khan said that it is obvious that the US will work for its interests, this has been neglected in the past by the Pakistani government. However this time, Pakistan will take care of the interests of the people of Pakistan before anyone else.
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