ISLAMABAD: US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Ambassador James Dobbins traveled to Pakistan May 29-30, his first trip to the country in his new capacity.

Ambassador Dobbins met with Foreign Secretary Jalil Abbas Jilani, Chief of Army Staff Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, and prime minister-elect Nawaz Sharif.

Ambassador Dobbins spoke by phone with President Asif Ali Zardari who was in Karachi.

Ambassador Dobbins offered congratulations to the people of Pakistan on the historic May 11 elections and underscored the United States' commitment to working with the next democratically-elected government to build a strong, mutually beneficial bilateral relationship.

During his engagements, Ambassador Dobbins and his interlocutors discussed a range of bilateral and regional issues, including advancing shared counterterrorism objectives; increasing economic opportunity; strengthening civilian democracy and civil society; and supporting an Afghan-owned and Afghan-led reconciliation process.