WASHINGTON / NEW YORK, March 4: Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali is to meet President George W. Bush on March 28 at the White House when he comes to the United States on his first official visit, officials told Dawn.

Confirming the meeting, a State Department official said meetings with Secretary of State Colin Powell, Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and other senior officials of the Bush administration are still being finalized.

The Pakistan embassy in Washington said that the prime minister and his delegation will stay at Blair House, the official guest house of the US government.

The embassy said it was still not clear whether the prime minister would come straight from China on March 26 or would first go to Islamabad before leaving for Washington.

On March 27, Mr Jamali will inaugurate the new Pakistani embassy on Washington’s International Drive.

On March 28, after his meeting with President Bush, Mr Jamali is also expected to meet US senators and congressmen on Capitol Hill and visit the Pentagon. He will also address the Pakistani community at a local hotel.

On March 29, he is scheduled to fly to Houston to attend a conference of businessmen interested in investing in Pakistan.

On March 30, he will fly to New York where he is expected to meet UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. He will also address a joint session of the members of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Asia Society. He is scheduled to return home on April 1.