Pakistan desires 'civilized relationship' with US: PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan says Pakistan wants “a civilized relationship” with the United States (US).

In an interview with the New York Times, he said Pakistan has always had a closer relationship with the US than India. Pakistan opted to join the US war on terror after 9/11, he added.

“Now, after the US leaves Afghanistan, Pakistan would want a civilized relationship, which you have between nations, and we would like to improve our trading relationship with the US,” Prime Minister Khan maintained.

When asked to elaborate, he said the ties should be like between the US and Britian or between the US and India right now. “So a relationship which is evenhanded. Unfortunately, the relationship was a bit lopsided during this war on terror,” he added.

“It was a lopsided relationship because [the] U.S. felt that they were giving aid to Pakistan, they felt that Pakistan then had to do U.S.’s bidding,” Prime Minister Khan said.

“What Pakistan did in terms of trying to do the US bidding actually cost Pakistan a lot in human lives. Seventy thousand Pakistanis died, and over $150 billion were lost to the economy because there were suicide bombings and bombs going on all over the country. That’s where the problem began.”

“The US kept expecting more from Pakistan. And unfortunately, Pakistani governments tried to deliver what they were not capable of. So there was this mistrust between the two countries.”

About India, the prime minister said if Islamabad and New Delhi had a normal, civilized trading relationship, it would benefit both the countries.