US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar, in Washington on Friday. The two leaders held wide-ranging talks on strengthening bilateral ties, trade cooperation, and regional security.
Taking to X, Rubio said he thanked Dar for “Pakistan’s partnership in countering terrorism and preserving regional stability.” The leaders also discussed ways to expand bilateral trade and deepen collaboration in the critical minerals and mining sectors.
According to US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce, Secretary Rubio expressed appreciation for “Pakistan’s continued willingness to play a constructive role in mediating conversations with Iran and its commitment to preserving regional stability.”
The two sides also discussed plans for the upcoming US-Pakistan Counterterrorism Dialogue set to be held in Islamabad this August. The talks included enhancing cooperation against terror groups such as ISIS-K, as both nations seek to broaden counterterrorism efforts in the region.
Secretary Rubio stressed the importance of “expanding mutually beneficial bilateral trade” and exploring future opportunities for joint work in the minerals sector, an area gaining strategic significance amid growing global demand for critical resources.
According to Arab News, Ishaq Dar is on an eight-day visit to the US, during which he chaired multiple United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meetings as part of Pakistan’s rotating presidency this month.
The meeting comes just days after Rubio announced that the United States would designate The Resistance Front (TRF), a front for the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), as both a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).
TRF had claimed responsibility for the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which killed 26 people.
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