Mike Pompeo and Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan look to reset relations between the two nations Getty Images Imran Khan, the new prime minister of Pakistan, urged the United States to respect his country’s sacrifices in the war on terror yesterday as he met Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, in an attempt to salvage deteriorating relations between the two nations. Mr Pompeo flew into Islamabad for the first high-level talks between American officials and those from the new administration and Pakistan’s military. He said that he hoped to “reset” relations that have sunk to a new low, with America cancelling $300 million in military aid to Pakistan over its failure to curb support for militant groups. Seeking Pakistani support for US efforts to broker peace talks in Afghanistan, Mr Pompeo also met Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the foreign minister, and General Qamar…<doc-sep>ISLAMABAD (REUTERS) - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad on Wednesday (Sept 5), in the first high-level US visit to the new government, looking to "reset" relations strained over the war in Afghanistan. Tensions between the uneasy allies were raised ahead of Wednesday's visit when the Pentagon confirmed it had made a final decision to cancel US$300 million in military aid to Pakistan. After greeting Khan in the capital Islamabad, Pompeo said he was “very pleased” with his earlier meeting with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi. Khan, a cricket legend who swept to power in the July elections, said he was hopeful about resetting relations. “I’m a born optimist. A sportsman always is an optimist. He steps on the field and he thinks he’s going to win,” Khan told reporters. Pompeo is next due to visit India, Pakistan's neighbour and bitter foe, where he is expected to pile pressure on New Delhi over its purchases of Iranian oil and Russian missile systems in talks with senior Indian officials. With Pakistan's Khan taking office in August, Pompeo said on the way to the nuclear-armed nation that he wanted "to get out there at the beginning of his time in an effort to reset the relationship between the two countries". On the plane from the United States, Pompeo told reporters:"There are a lot of challenges between our two nations for sure but we're hopeful that with the new leadership that we can find common ground and we can begin to work on some of our shared problems together." In Islamabad, Pompeo was also expected to meet the army chief, Qamar Javed Bajwa. The meetings come against a backdrop of tense ties and US military aid cuts over Islamabad's alleged reluctance to crack down on militants sheltering on its territory. Related Story Trump's rougher edge complicates trip by Pompeo and Mattis to India Ties between uneasy allies United States and Pakistan have frayed in recent years, with Washington accusing Islamabad of turning a blind eye to, or helping, Afghan Taleban and Haqqani network militants who stage attacks in Afghanistan. Pakistan denies doing so. Pompeo landed in Islamabad around 1 pm (4pm Singapore time), minutes after the plane carrying US Marine General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Ahead of the talks, Dunford said US President Donald Trump's South Asia strategy set clear expectations for Pakistan, including help to drive the Taleban to a peace process in neighbouring Afghanistan. "Our bilateral relationship moving forward is very much going to be informed by the degree of cooperation we see from Pakistan in doing that," Dunford told reporters. Taking a tougher line with an ally that Trump considers unreliable, the United States halted the military aid disbursement of the Coalition Support Funds, over Islamabad's perceived failure to rein in Afghan Taleban militants operating from Pakistani soil. The United States has withheld US$800 million in overall assistance this year, cuts Pakistan says are unwarranted as it incurs expenses in fighting militants who pose a danger to US troops in Afghanistan. Before Wednesday's talks Qureshi said he would "have exchanges" with Pompeo over Washington's cancellation of the US$300-million disbursement for the Pakistani military, first reported by Reuters last week. Pompeo is also expected to discuss Pakistan's possible plans to seek a bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to ease currency pressures and avert an economic crisis. In July, Pompeo said there was "no rationale" for the IMF to give money to Pakistan that would then be used to pay off Chinese loans, comments that further rattled Islamabad. Pompeo and US Defence Secretary James Mattis will meet their Indian counterparts in the capital, New Delhi, on Thursday, and are expected to finalise defence pacts that could bring their militaries closer amid China's rising influence. The talks come as US hostility rises towards India's traditional allies Iran and Russia, on which Washington has placed sanctions. Iran is a big oil supplier to India, and two-thirds of its military equipment is from Russia. "They're part of the conversation, they're part of the relationship, they will certainly come up, but I don't think they will be the primary focus of what it is we're trying to accomplish here," Pompeo told U.S. pool reporters en route to Pakistan. The United States is concerned about India's planned purchase of S-400 surface-to-air missile systems from Russia. An Indian defence ministry official said the country had nearly concluded commercial negotiations with Russia for the systems and intends to proceed with them, to boost defences against China. On Iran, India has said it will not completely halt oil imports from the Middle Eastern country, but would finalise its strategy on crude purchases after this week's meeting.<doc-sep>Islamabad: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met Pakistan's new Prime Minister Imran Khan Wednesday and pressed him to take "sustained and decisive measures" against terrorists threatening the regional peace and stability, days after the US cancelled $300 million in military aid to Islamabad for failing to rein in the terror groups operating from its soil. Pompeo, the former CIA chief who was on his first visit to Pakistan as the top American diplomat, told Khan that he was "pleased" with his meeting with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi earlier in the day. But at the same time, Pompeo asked Khan "to do more" at the meeting, which was also attended by Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa and Foreign Minister Qureshi, Geo TV reported, citing diplomatic sources. This was the US' first high-level dialogue with Pakistan since the new government of Prime Minister Khan assumed office after the July 25 elections and comes days after the US cancelled $300 million in military aid to Islamabad for not doing enough against terror groups active on its soil. Talking to reporters travelling with him, Pompeo said, "We made clear to them that and they agreed it's time for us to begin to deliver on our joint commitments, right". "So we've had lots of times where we've talked and made agreements, but we haven't been able to actually execute those. "And so there was broad agreement between myself and Foreign Minister Qureshi, as well as with the prime minister, that we need to begin to do things that will begin to actually, on the ground, deliver outcomes so that we can begin to build confidence and trust between the two countries," he added. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said that in all of his meetings, Secretary Pompeo conveyed the need for Pakistan to take "sustained and decisive measures against terrorists and militants threatening regional peace and stability." Later, Qureshi told reporters that the Pakistani perspective was presented responsibly to the US delegation. "We tried to understand their wishes and put forth our own expectations and concerns," he said. "Ice has been thawed." "Today, we felt that we have created an atmosphere to reset our relations, and the lack of trust that was present has been broken which is a very positive development. "Believe me, if our narrative had not set in with them, the atmosphere would have been different...," he said. "I told them that if you want to proceed with Pakistan, the foundation lies in trust, frank and candid conversation. And until and unless we address concerns from both the sides, progress is not possible," he said. Regarding the US delegation's meeting with Prime Minister Khan, Qureshi said: "During the meeting at the PM House we all sat down and exchanged views. In the past, they used to come, meet the PM and then went to the GHQ (Army headquarters). Today's meeting sent a clear message that we are all on the same page." Qureshi said he decided against raising the US decision to scrap the $300 million in aid. "That decision was taken before this govt took charge. I gave this matter some thought then I decided against raising it because free nations think along the lines of self-sufficiency. We will take a new direction," he said. "The meeting has created environment to reset the relations and removed the hiatus," he added. The two sides also discussed the Afghan peace process. Pompeo, who along with US Joint Chief of Staff Chairman Gen Joseph Dunford had arrived on an official visit to Pakistan, earlier met Qureshi and discussed "bilateral, regional and international issues". In a statement, the Foreign Office said Qureshi highlighted that the priority of the new Government was socio-economic development and for the success of people centered agenda and economic reforms, an enabling regional security environment was imperative. He said improving relations with neighbours was a priority, in an apparent reference to strained ties with India and Afghanistan, which often accuses Pakistan of providing safe havens to militants to conduct cross border attacks. Qureshi also reaffirmed Pakistan's commitment to continue efforts for promoting peace and stability in Afghanistan. "The two sides agreed that present conditions in Afghanistan were conducive to intensifying efforts for a political settlement. They underscored the need for the Taliban to seize the opportunity for talks in response to President Ghani's offer for an unconditional dialogue," the statement said. Pompeo stated that US fully supported the reform agenda of Prime Minister Khan and wished the government success in its implementation, it said, adding that Pompeo conveyed the US desire to work with Pakistan in furthering the shared objectives of peace and stability in Afghanistan. The ties between the two sides strained after President Donald Trump, while announcing his Afghanistan and South Asia policy in August last year, hit out at Pakistan for providing safe havens to "agents of chaos" that kill Americans in Afghanistan and warned Islamabad that it has "much to lose" by harbouring terrorists. He had also slammed Pakistan for its support to terror groups and warned Islamabad of consequences if it continues to do so. In January, Trump suspended all military assistance to Pakistan accusing it of rewarding past assistance with "nothing but lies and deceit." The ties between the two "allies" are passing through a difficult period as the US is upset over what it calls lack of cooperation from Islamabad.<doc-sep>
Aid cut to hit ties further? NEW DELHI: US secretary of state Mike Pompeo arrived in Islamabad Wednesday afternoon in an attempt to "reset" the frigid ties with a once firm ally, Pakistan , reported the country's media.The US is hoping for change with a new leader in Pakistan, Prime Minister Imran Khan , who though virulently anti-US in the past has shown restraint in his comments after he became PM. "First stop Pakistan; a new leader there. I wanted to get out there at the beginning of his [Imran Khan's] time in an effort to reset the relationship between the two countries," said Pompeo earlier, to media representatives travelling with him to Pakistan, according to newspaper Dawn.The erstwhile firm allies' relationship has hit rock bottom over the last couple of years with the US extremely annoyed that Pakistan isn't taking decisive action against terror aimed at Afghanistan and India from its soil. And, if such a thing is possible, ties crashed even lower right at the start of 2018, no thanks to a blistering New Year's Day Twitter tirade by US President Donald Trump, who accused Pakistan of "lies and deceit".Along with that Trump attack, Washington in January axed $500 million in aid to Pakistan. To make matters worse, the US twisted the knife in with another $300 million cut last week, mere days ahead of Pompeo's visit. The reason? Pakistan is still not doing enough to stomp out terrorism.To say that US-Pakistan ties need a "reset" therefore is at best an understatement. But that's what both sides are hoping for, especially now, with new Prime Minister Khan. Pompeo's is the first official US visit with the new PM.In his chat with the media en route to Pakistan, Pompeo did note that most of the developments that negatively affected Pakistan-US relations took place long before Khan was in power. He added that in his recent telephone call with Khan they agreed that peace in Afghanistan was a "shared goal. ""We have worked closely with the Pakistanis in my role as CIA [Central Intelligence Agency] director. Our teams have been working together for a long time. There are lots of challenges between our two nations for sure, but we're hopeful that with the new leadership, we can find common ground and begin to work on some of our shared problems together," said the US secretary of state.When asked whether last week's $300 million aid cut was considered a good starting point for the "reset" of ties, Pompeo said the very reason for his trip was to clearly communicate with Pakistan what US expectations are, what Pakistan could do for it and vice versa, to avoid further aid cuts. "(We want to) see if we can't find a path forward together...I'm hoping we can turn the page and begin to make progress. But there are real expectations," he said, adding that Pakistan needs to seriously engage to help the US get to the reconciliation needed in Pakistan's neighbour, war-torn Afghanistan.Of course, Pompeo's agenda also includes a pow wow with the chief of Pakistan's all-powerful army; many say Khan is a military stooge. The US official is accompanied by the US military chief General Joseph Dunford. "We'll also meet with (Pakistan's army chief) General (Qamar) Bajwa, who we both know, who I've met with a number of times, as well as my counterpart, Foreign Minister [Shah Mehmood] Qureshi," said Pompeo.Pompeo noted that both the outgoing and incoming commanders of US forces in Afghanistan have said that reconciliation there was not possible without Pakistan's assistance, and that includes the Pakistani army's help. "So, we'll have three opportunities to walk through the complexity that is this relationship and hopefully begin to make some progress so that we can get back to a set of common understandings," said Pompeo, the third opportunity he referred being a meeting with PM Khan.