 "Ties between the US and Pakistan have improved under Donald Trump. File Photo/Reuters")
As Washington and Islamabad grow closer under Donald Trump, reports claimed that the US President is set to visit Pakistan in September. The development was reported by local television news channels in Pakistan on Thursday (July 17), citing sources.
The media reports also claimed that after landing in Pakistan, Trump will visit India. The channels later withdrew their reports. But why? What happened?
We will explain.
Is Trump visiting Pakistan?
Pakistani leading broadcaster Geo News, citing unnamed ministry officials, reported that US President Trump is expected to arrive in the South Asian nation on September 18.
ARY news channel also reported on Trump’s trip to Pakistan in September. The TV channels also claimed that after he visits Islamabad, the US president will continue on to India.
However, both channels later withdrew their reports. “Geo News apologises to its viewers for airing the news without a verification,” it said.
Speaking to Reuters, a senior management official at ARY said they took down the report as Pakistan’s foreign office said it was not aware of the visit.
After several media outlets reported, citing these Pakistani news channels, on Trump’s visit, the White House cleared the air. It said no such visit was scheduled “at this time”.
“A trip to Pakistan has not been scheduled at this time,” a White House official was quoted as saying by Reuters. A US embassy spokesperson in Islamabad told the news agency, “We have nothing to announce.”
Speaking to Pakistani daily Dawn on the reports, Pakistan Foreign Office Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said: “We have no information about this matter.”
Pakistan Foreign Ministry sources called the reports about Trump’s trip “fake” as the US president is visiting the United Kingdom between September 17 and 19. “We have no information about any such visit. If there is any such thing, the Foreign Ministry will officially announce that,” a senior ministry official told Anadolu on the condition of anonymity.
How the US and Pakistan are getting closer
Since Trump returned to office, the US and Pakistan’s relations have seen a major boost. Last month, the American president hosted the Pakistan Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, at the White House for lunch.
Trump said he was “honoured” to meet Munir and the two discussed Iran, which the US president said Pakistan knew better than most.
Speaking to reporters, the US president said he had thanked the Pakistan Army chief for ending the war with India, for which he also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Trump has repeatedly taken credit for brokering the ceasefire between India and Pakistan after four days of conflict in May.
On May 7, India launched “precise” military strikes on nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) under Operation Sindoor in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. This triggered an exchange of heavy fire between the two neighbours for four straight days.
New Delhi has maintained that a ceasefire was reached between the militaries of the two nations. However, Trump continues to claim that he “stopped” the war between India and Pakistan.
Islamabad has reiterated the US president’s claim and thanked him for his efforts.
To woo Trump, Pakistan has also recommended Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, citing his “decisive diplomatic intervention” and “pivotal leadership” in May, when India and Pakistan traded strikes.
The US president’s obsession with the prestigious award is well-known. He has been coveting the honour since his first term at the White House.
During Munir’s visit to the US, the two sides discussed expanding bilateral trade, “economic development, mines and minerals, artificial intelligence, energy, cryptocurrency, and emerging technologies,” Dawn reported, citing the Pakistani military’s media wing.
Cash-strapped Pakistan has hired Keith Schiller, a former bodyguard of Trump, as its lobbyist in Washington, DC. Islamabad signed two contracts with Trump-linked lobbyists worth $450,000 a month, reported The Guardian.
Pakistan is rich in rare earth minerals, which are considered critical to US security. However, global supply chains for these minerals are dominated by China. After Ukraine, Trump is now eyeing Pakistan’s rare earth minerals. This could explain the recent uplift in ties between the US and Pakistan, driven more by business than strategic interests.
Will Trump visit Pakistan in future?
The possibility of Trump visiting Pakistan cannot be ruled out. If it happens, he would be the first US president to travel to the South Asian country since George W Bush in 2006.
Trump is set to visit India for the Quad summit, the dates for which are yet to be finalised. According to a Times of India (TOI) report, Pakistani business leaders and influencers are trying hard to press the White House for the US president’s stopover in Islamabad during the India trip.
The Quad, an informal strategic forum, also includes Japan and Australia.
With inputs from agencies