WASHINGTON: Continuing the recent trend of high-level engagement between the United States and Pakistan, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar is scheduled to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on July 25 after his visit to New York.

This will be the first cabinet-level meeting since President Trump’s unprecedented White House lunch with Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir. Such senior-level contacts had remained dormant since 2016, marking this as a significant diplomatic reset.

Mr Dar is arriving in New York on Sunday afternoon to participate in Pakistan’s high-level engagements under its current presidency of the UN Security Council (UNSC), before traveling to Washington for bilateral meetings.

In New York, he will chair an open debate on “Promoting international peace and security through multilateralism and peaceful settlement of disputes.”

Foreign minister due in New York today

He will also preside over the quarterly UNSC debate on the “Situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian Question” and lead a high-level briefing focused on enhanced cooperation between the UN and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. He will also attend a conference on “Peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine and the implementation of the two-state solution.”

Still, the most consequential part of his visit remains the upcoming meeting with Secretary Rubio — signalling a resumption of strategic dialogue after years of limited contact.

Mr Dar’s visit follows Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb’s meeting with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington where they discussed a long-anticipated trade and tariff agreement.

Mr Aurangzeb called the talks “very constructive” and emphasised that the bilateral relationship must go beyond trade. “We have to move beyond the immediate trade imperative,” he said.

“For the Pakistan-US relationship to move to the next level, investment is the key — and we believe areas like minerals, AI, and crypto could be real game changers,” the finance minister said before returning to Pakistan on Saturday.

Published in Dawn, July 21st, 2025