The US Senator John McCain has requested Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani to lift restrictions on travel of US diplomats within the country, informed sources revealed exclusively to this correspondent. The visiting Senator, John McCain, who called on Prime Minister on Saturday, raised the issued of travel restrictions on the US diplomats within Pakistan.
However, a statement about the meeting issued by the Prime Minister's Secretariat did not mention whether any discussion on the issue was held. A Pakistani official, on condition of anonymity, declared that travel restrictions had been designed for the security of US diplomats.
When contacted, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Tehmina Janjua said there were no US-specific restrictions. However, she added, there were general guidelines regarding the travel of Pakistan-based diplomats, designed only to ensure their safety and security, which had existed for a long time. She pointed out that the Vienna Convention also stressed for application of local rules on diplomats.
Relations between the two countries remain tense subsequent to May 2 operation at Abbottabad by the US forces that killed Osama Bin Laden. Since then various top US officials have visited Pakistan with the purpose of ameliorating relations.
The statement stated that MacCain called on the Prime Minister on Saturday and discussed bilateral relations. The Prime Minister stated that Pakistan wanted to have an enduring partnership with the United States and the relationship between the two countries should go beyond co-operation on terrorism.
Gilani said he would welcome the visit by the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Pakistan looked forward to a deeper level of engagement with the US in all areas of our bilateral relations including energy, social sector and economic co-operation, the Prime Minister said. He also appreciated Senator McCain's continued support to Pakistan in the US Congress.
Senator McCain, who is a Ranking Member of US Senate Armed Services Committee, acknowledged that relations between the US and Pakistan had seen difficult times in the past. US considered Pakistan as an important country and it was not in the US national interest to abandon Pakistan once again.
He assured the Prime Minister of the United States' continued support to the people of Pakistan in their endeavour to secure a stable and prosperous future. The US Ambassador in Pakistan, Cameron Munter, Minister for Interior, Rehman Malik, Senator Syeda Sughra Imam and other senior officials were also present.