ISLAMABAD, May 5: A senior US official said on Saturday that Pakistan could not be called a failed state because its economy was booming and performing well on all fronts and had the potential of strengthening further in the days ahead.

“On the basis of my interaction with Pakistan and the American business community, I can say with confidence that Pakistan is the opposite of a failed state,” US Under-Secretary for International Trade Franklin L. Lavin told a press briefing here.

Mr Lavin said the country was facing some challenges but it had the “capability, leadership and necessary policies” to keep up its economic momentum.

Disagreeing with a report released by a US-based journal rating Pakistan a failed state, Mr Lavin said that although he had respect for the freedom of press in his country the views expressed in magazines had nothing to do with official US policy.

Answering a question, he said the US administration was in the process of introducing legislation in the Congress to pave the way for establishment of economic opportunities zones (EOZs) in the tribal areas of Pakistan.

Mr Lavin told a questioner that Pakistan’s exports enjoyed open access to the United States. He pointed out that Pakistan’s exports to the US had grown from $2.9 billion in 2004 to $3.3 billion in 2005, showing a 10 per cent increase. Last year, he said, the United States had a trade deficit of $2 billion with Pakistan.

He said the Pakistan-US economic and trade ties were moving in the right direction.