# Talks aimed at strengthening ties between U.S., Pakistan

/ Published March 23, 2010

WASHINGTON (March 23, 2010) –  Talks between Pakistani and American officials seek to strengthen,  broaden and deepen the ties between the two countries, Pentagon press  secretary Geoff Morrell said here today.

                        High-level talks between the United States and Pakistan are designed  to chart the course of the relationship between the two nations as they  move forward. “This is a meeting between equals,” said a military  official speaking on background. “Both countries will gain from this  discussion.” Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Navy Adm.  Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will participate  in the discussions, but the Strategic Dialogue – as it is being called –  is not primarily a security discussion. Secretary of State  Hillary Clinton will lead the American side and Pakistani Foreign  Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi is her opposite number. The  dialogue stresses the U.S.-Pakistani partnership that goes far beyond  security. “It represents a shared commitment on the part of both nations  to strengthening the bilateral relationship and building an even  broader partnership based on mutual respect and mutual trust,”  Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, President Obama’s special representative  for Afghanistan and Pakistan, said last week. The meetings begin  at the State Department tomorrow, and the dialogue encompasses all  aspects of U.S.-Pakistani relations. Also participating are Defense  Minister Ahmed Mukhtar, the adviser to the prime minister on social  issues, Wazir Ali; the adviser to the prime minister on agriculture and  water, Majid Ullah; the chief of staff of the army, Gen. Ashfaq Kayani,  and many others. Among the American delegation are Agriculture  Secretary Tom Vilsack, Deputy Secretary of State Jack Lew, Deputy  Treasury Secretary Neal Wolin, National Security Council Senior Director  David Lipton, the administrator of the U.S. Agency for International  Development Rajiv Shah, and others. “This dialogue is designed  to produce a better long-term strategic relationship between our two  countries,” Morrell said. “This is not simply about asking and receiving  items.” The whole range of U.S-Pakistani relations will be  discussed. The United States and Pakistan can discuss agricultural  methods and new means of irrigation. “Water and electricity are becoming  problems in Pakistan,” said the military official. “We can certainly  share some experiences on those.” Delivering education is  important, as is increasing the effectiveness of civil service  personnel. Participants in the dialogue also will address ways to  improve the image of America among the Pakistani population, officials  said. Gates and Mullen met with Gen. Kayani at the Pentagon  yesterday. They will continue the meeting on Thursday. Pakistani lessons  in the counterinsurgency campaign, intelligence-sharing and training  will be discussed. The military-to-military relationship between  the two countries is improving. Both sides are trying to overcome the  effects of the Pressler Amendment, which forbade the U.S. military from  dealing with the Pakistanis for 12 years. More exercises, more training  together, more military exchanges between the United States and Pakistan  are needed, the official said, and that is being planned. The  bottom line is that both the United States and Pakistan are democracies  and it is in both countries’ interests to work together. “The United  States is supporting Pakistan as it seeks to strengthen democratic  institutions, as it seeks to foster more economic development, expand  opportunities, deal with its energy and water problems and defeat the  extremist groups who threaten both Pakistan’s security and stability in  the larger region and American national security as well,” Holbrooke  said.