ISLAMABAD – National Security Advisor (NSA) Moeed Yusuf on Monday left for Washington on his crucial visit to the US amid a volatile situation in Afghanistan where the Taliban capitalising on the withdrawal of foreign troops with sweeping advances.
Yusuf, according to an official statement, will hold key meetings with his US counterpart Jack Sullivan and other officials to discuss bilateral relations.
He will also discuss the prevailing situation in Afghanistan with US officials. The NSA is also scheduled to meet various think tanks and the Pakistani community in the US.
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director General Lt Gen Faiz Hameed is also expected to visit Washington for talks with his American counterparts.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is also scheduled to visit New Delhi and Kabul for talks aimed at designing a plan for peaceful resolution of the Afghan crisis.
At a recent briefing in Washington, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the US hopes to “see Afghanistan’s neighbours play a constructive, responsible role in bringing about a just and durable solution” to the Afghan conflict.
In the same briefing, he said: “We understand the crucial role that Pakistan has the potential to play in this regard.”
This is the second meeting between Moeed Yusuf and his American counterpart, who first met in Geneva in March this year.
The Geneva meeting was the first highest-level physical contact between the two countries since President Biden took office.
Secretary Blinken, however, had earlier held telephonic conversations with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Army Chief Gen Qamar Bajwa.
