Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi said the United States is not willing to release the amount due from the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) which has already been spent by Pakistan and yet claims Pakistan has 'not done enough' in the ongoing war on terror.

"The US is not willing to release the funds from CSF which we have already spent on the war on terror, yet they (US officials) always complain about our lack of efforts," said Fatemi.

Fatemi was speaking with DawnNews anchor Amber Shamsi on Monday.

"Pakistan's role in the war on terror has been unprecedented, and the country has achieved immense success. The work done by Pakistan has not been done by any European country or the US," added the special assistant to the prime minister.

He said the credit for the success goes to the elected leadership and the stakeholders, the armed forces.

'Pakistan is not isolated'

Answering a question regarding India's attempt to isolate the country on the international front, Fatemi rubbished claims that Pakistan has suffered due to India's ongoing efforts.

"I do not agree that Pakistan has been isolated diplomatically."

He was of the opinion that India's refusal to attend the Saarc conference was more damaging to the region as a whole rather than Pakistan.

"India does not forgive any country. Nepal's Saarc summit was sabotaged by India. Maldives and Sri Lanka's Saarc summit was also sabotaged by India," added Fatemi.

He further added that India uses the Saarc summit as a means to pressurise other countries.

"All major international countries are of the opinion that the only way forward towards progress is through regional cooperation."

He said Saarc is the only organisation in the region present for regional cooperation, and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was to present proposals for cooperation which would have benefited every country in the region.

'Central Asia is a major area of activity'

Talking in regards to Russia and the Central Asian states, Fatemi said Central Asia was a blank spot in the foreign policy of Pakistan and, "measures have been taken to rectify the situation."

He said relations with Russia was an area with significant problems due to the history between the two countries.

"Now we are bringing the Russians on board various projects in the country and increasing defence cooperation," stated the special assistant to the premier.

"Pakistan's foreign policy was not geared towards Central Asia, and it was a blank spot for which we had no direction. Now, it has become a major area of activity for us," said the special assistant.

He said Pakistan is now getting political support from the region after the shift in policy, along with economic, energy and power projects.

"Using the connectivity, we will utilise the Central Asian states to enter Europe. The idea is to be connected to further deepen our ties."

"We are also discussing a road from Gwadar which would connect to the Pak-Iran border and beyond. Another option present is to make another diversion on the Karakoram Highway before Xinjiang and enter Kyrgyzstan," added Fatemi.