No hidden motive behind army chief’s extended visit: US

Published December 3, 2014
This photo shows Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif shaking hands with US Secretary of State John Kerry. — Photo courtesy: Major General Asim Bajwa's Twitter account
This photo shows Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif shaking hands with US Secretary of State John Kerry. — Photo courtesy: Major General Asim Bajwa's Twitter account
The image shows the building of the US State Department.—AFP/file
The image shows the building of the US State Department.—AFP/file

WASHINGTON: The US State Department rejected on Tuesday the suggestion that Army Chief Gen Raheel Sharif’s long stay in the United States had any hidden motive.

The department’s Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf told a briefing in Washington that since US Secretary of State John Kerry was out of the country when Gen Sharif first came to Washington two weeks ago, the two sides decided to have the meeting on Nov 30.

She noted that Secretary Kerry was travelling in Europe when the army chief came.

When a reporter asked why should the army chief stay away for so long from a country which faced a serious security problem, she said: “I do not have any analysis to do that for you.”

Published in Dawn, December 3rd, 2014

Opinion

Editorial

By-election trends
Updated 23 Apr, 2024

By-election trends

Unless the culture of violence and rigging is rooted out, the credibility of the electoral process in Pakistan will continue to remain under a cloud.
Privatising PIA
23 Apr, 2024

Privatising PIA

FINANCE Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb’s reaffirmation that the process of disinvestment of the loss-making national...
Suffering in captivity
23 Apr, 2024

Suffering in captivity

YET another animal — a lioness — is critically ill at the Karachi Zoo. The feline, emaciated and barely able to...
Not without reform
Updated 22 Apr, 2024

Not without reform

The problem with us is that our ruling elite is still trying to find a way around the tough reforms that will hit their privileges.
Raisi’s visit
22 Apr, 2024

Raisi’s visit

IRANIAN President Ebrahim Raisi, who begins his three-day trip to Pakistan today, will be visiting the country ...
Janus-faced
22 Apr, 2024

Janus-faced

THE US has done it again. While officially insisting it is committed to a peaceful resolution to the...