US envoy heads to Pakistan amid relations review

A top US diplomat will head this week to Pakistan to promote cooperation between the war partners as the parliament in Islamabad reviews the troubled relationship, the State Department said Monday.

Deputy Secretary of State Tom Nides will visit Islamabad on Wednesday as parliament winds up its debate on recommendations for the US-Pakistan relationship, which has been rocked by multiple crises for months.

The trip comes amid a gradual resumption of dialogue, including President Barack Obama's meeting with Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on March 27 on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit in Seoul.

"We look forward to continuing discussions with the government of Pakistan on matters of mutual concern, such as security; peace and stability in Afghanistan; and economic development," a State Department statement said.

"As President Obama said before his meeting with Prime Minister Gilani, we respect the work of the parliament and believe it is important for us to have candid dialogue to work through these issues going forward," it said.

US lawmakers voiced fury in May last year when US forces killed the world's most-wanted man Osama bin Laden in Pakistan, which had received ê18 billion in aid for cooperation since the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Pakistan in turn questioned the relationship and closed its Afghan border to NATO supplies in November after an air strike killed 24 Pakistani soldiers. Obama voiced regret for the deaths but stopped short of apologizing.

Pakistan's parliament is debating a series of recommendations before a potential reopening of the border, including demands for a US apology, an end to drone strikes deep into Pakistani territory and taxes on NATO convoys.

Nides, who is heading to Pakistan after a stop in Jordan, will meet senior officials including Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, the State Department said.

General James Mattis, the head of US Central Command, and General John Allen, the US commander of NATO troops in Afghanistan, visited Pakistan last month in the first such trip since the border incident.

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