ISLAMABAD, JUL 23: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar is scheduled to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on July 25 in Washington in what will be the first high-level engagement between the two since Rubio assumed office.
The meeting, confirmed by US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce, will see senior officials from both sides in attendance.
“Preparations for the meeting are complete, and I will be present alongside top leaders from both delegations,” Bruce said during a press briefing.
Dar is currently on an official visit to the United States and is expected to travel to Washington after concluding engagements in New York, which include meetings with the Pakistani diaspora and leading US think tanks, as well as interviews with international media.
While the official agenda has not been publicly disclosed, diplomatic sources suggest that regional security, including the Kashmir dispute, India-Pakistan border tensions, and the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty by New Delhi, are expected to feature prominently in the discussions.
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The visit comes in the backdrop of heightened tensions in South Asia following a deadly attack in April in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam that left 26 men dead.
India blamed Pakistan for the incident, an allegation Islamabad strongly denied, calling instead for an independent investigation.
Subsequently, on May 7, Indian jets bombed multiple sites inside Pakistan, triggering a sharp military exchange between the two nuclear-armed neighbours involving fighter jets, drones, missiles, and artillery. The escalation led to dozens of casualties on both sides before a ceasefire was reached.
According to officials familiar with the matter, Dar is expected to convey Pakistan’s appreciation to US President Donald Trump for what Islamabad views as his “constructive role” in de-escalating the recent military confrontation between Pakistan and India.
Last month, Pakistan formally recommended President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, with a letter signed by Dar himself and sent to the Nobel Committee in Oslo.
President Trump had earlier described the Kashmir dispute as a “long-standing, unresolved issue” and offered to mediate between the two countries—a proposal welcomed by Pakistan but firmly rejected by India.
