ISLAMABAD, Oct 16: The US Secretary of State Mr Colin Powell held two detailed meetings with five federal ministers here on Tuesday and assured them that Washington will offer substantial support for “Afghan refugees, give market access and extend all possible fiscal support to Pakistan.”

Official sources told Dawn that during the first meeting, ministers for foreign affairs, interior, finance, commerce and Kashmir, states and frontier region participated and discussed with the US secretary of state issues that Pakistan was facing in the aftermath of Sept 11 terrorist attack in New York and Washington.

Later, Mr Powell held another meeting with foreign minister, finance minister and commerce minister and discussed with them some of the specific issues to improve Pakistan’s economy.

“Besides the support for Afghan refugees, Mr Powell assured Pakistan of market access for its products in the United States,” said a senior official of the ministry of finance.

When contacted, he said the US secretary of state told Pakistani ministers that as a first step, a number of remaining international sanctions against Pakistan had been lifted and that now his country would offer market access for textiles and other Pakistani products.

Pakistan pleaded that if Bangladesh could be offered special treatment and given huge market access in the United States, why Pakistan should not get a similar treatment, especially when it was extending all the required support to the Americans.

The sources said that Mr Powell concurred with the contention and assured the Pakistani ministers that market access will be given to Islamabad by bringing about new adjustments with other countries.

Likewise, he said that Pakistan will be offered the required fiscal support to manage its serious economic problems. “This fiscal support could be in the shape of rescheduling or writing off of loans together with some good financial package on concessional terms,” a senior finance ministry official said.