British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has just visited Pakistan where he pledged British support for the government’s initatives in education and assured Foreign Minister Qureshi that Britain would provide every possible support for improved trade, rehabilitation of IDPs, and improvements to infrastructure. Miliband said that his country is looking forward to stronger ties with Pakistan, and gave word that the British value the sacrifices Pakistan has made in the war against terrorism. The British Foreign Secretary also said that his country fully respects Pakistan’s sovereignty and supports the democratic government.
Prime Minister Gilani also met with the British Foreign Secretay and spoke with him about a number of issues including the importance of non-discrimination against Pakistanis applying for British visas.
The Prime Minister appreciated that both the countries have made progress on institutionalizing the existing mechanisms in the form of a strategic dialogue encompassing areas such as political, economic, trade, defence, security, education, science and technology and public diplomacy. He hoped that both sides would persist in their concerted efforts to strengthen their cooperation under the umbrella of the strategic dialogue. He appreciated the timely disbursement of economic assistance and the fact that Pakistan-UK Education Task Force is making progress for the development of this most important sector in Pakistan.
