Daily Times

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke Wednesday with Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and reaffirmed their commitment to expand a range of relations between the two countries, according to the State Department.

“The Secretary (of State) welcomed the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the United States and Pakistan and reaffirmed our joint goals for enhancing U.S.-Pakistan bilateral partnerships on economic stability, climate, and health,” the department said in a press release.

They also spoke about the impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on food security in Pakistan and the rest of the world, it said.

FM Bilawal also tweeted about his conversation with Blinken.

“We agreed to expand our engagement in trade, energy, health & security marking 75 years of our relationship. We must increase people-to-people & business-to-business contacts,” the foreign minister said.

Bilawal and the senior US official had their first face-to-face meeting in New York on May 18 where the two diplomats had affirmed their shared desire for a strong and prosperous bilateral relationship.

On May 6, Blinken telephoned FM Bilawal to congratulate him on becoming the country’s new foreign minister.