US praises Sharif on becoming Pakistani prime minister, reaffirms ‘worth’ of their relationship
WASHINGTON: The United States on Wednesday praised Shehbaz Sharif on ending up being Pakistan’s new prime minister following the ouster of his predecessor in a parliamentary no-confidence vote, with the leading U.S. diplomat reaffirming the”worth”of the relationship between the 2 nations. The warm toneof U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s declaration appeared to indicate a desire to fix ties harmed by previous Prime Minister Imran Khan’s harsh anti-U.S. rhetoric and his unproven charges that Washington engineered his
termination.”Pakistan has been a crucial partner on wide-ranging shared interests for almost 75 years and we value our relationship,”Blinken said.”The United States congratulates recently elected Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and we look forward to continuing our enduring cooperation.””The United States sees a strong, prosperous, anddemocratic Pakistan as important for the interests of both our nations,”he included. Blinken’s declaration came 2 days after the Western-friendly Sharif, 70, took the oath of office following days of political chaos resulting in Khan’s termination in Pakistan’s very first no-confidence vote considering that gaining independence from Britain in 1947. Khan, a previous cricket star-turned political leader, looked for to thwart the vote by liquifying Parliament and calling early elections after claiming that Washington was colluding with his challengers to oust him. Khan, 69, offered no proof of his allegations, which the United States denied. Pakistan’s greatest court
stated Khan’s actions unconstitutional and bought the vote to continue. A bulk of Parliament’s lower house supported his ouster on Sunday. Despite Blinken’s warm tone, experts stated they do not anticipate Washington to look for a substantial broadening of ties, but to remain primarily concentrated on security cooperation, especially on counterterrorism and Afghanistan. Experts stated they expected Sharif, the brother of three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif, to be preoccupied with pressing domestic concerns, specifically attempting to contain a serious financial crisis.(Reporting by Jonathan Landay Released at Wed, 13 Apr 2022 22:22:54 +0000