US ambassador Richard Olson Thursday said the United States would broaden its ties with Pakistan by extending co-operation in energy sector and building business relations. Talking to media men at United States Embassy, the ambassador said despite ups and down in the bilateral relations in the previous years, now relations between the two countries are on a positive trajectory.
The two countries built relations on the basis of common interest and mutual respect, he added. The ambassador recently made a trip alongwith Minister of Water and Power Khawaja Muhammad Asif and Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and representatives of Pakistan's oil and gas public sector enterprises to Washington and Houston to attend meetings of Pakistan-US Energy Working Group. Giving details of the discussions that took place during the visit, Olson said the two sides discussed prospects of import of liquefied natural gas from the US to Pakistan, development of oil, gas and hydel sector and short term energy needs of Pakistan.
He said Pakistan had laid down an aggressive timeline in bringing LNG to Pakistan and the US companies expressed interest in making imports of it to Pakistan. The meetings served a broader agenda of building of business to business contacts and "privatisation of US-Pakistan ties," he added. The ambassador said the meetings were reflective of the importance that both countries attach to the energy situation in Pakistan and were follow up to the successful visit of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to the United States. For the first time in ten years, a Pakistani Prime Minister went on an official visit to the United States, half of the US cabinet came to meet him and he and President Barack Obama had significant discussions on economic and security issues and regional situation, he elaborated.
The ambassador observed that despite the security challenges, the American companies have opportunities in diverse sectors, adding Pakistan offers relatively favourable terms for investment and allows repatriation of profits.
He was hopeful that with the right kind of economic and regulatory environment, more US companies would come to invest in Pakistan. The ambassador further said that US was very much involved in the hydel sector of Pakistan by financing projects like refurbishment of Tarbela and Mangla dams and helping in construction of Gomal Zam and Satpara dams and upgradation of Jamshoro and Muzaffargarh power plants.