Bulletins 1200 28th August 2017

ISLAMABAD: In a possible outcome of stern allegations by United States (US) president Donald Trump, Pakistan has postponed a visit by US acting Assistant Secretary of State in protest.

Earlier this week, President Donald Trump in his Afghanistan policy speech had accused Pakistan of harbouring terrorists on its soil and prolonging the Afghan war.

The visit of Alice Wells – acting assistant Secretary of State for South Asia and Asian Affairs – was scheduled for Monday and it would have been the first high-profile visit by a US official since Trump’s Afghan policy announced in a televised speech on August 21.

However, it would have been Wells second visit to Islamabad in the month.

“At the request of the Government of Pakistan, Acting Assistant Secretary Wells’ trip has been postponed until a mutually convenient time,” a U.S. Embassy spokesperson told an international news agency in Islamabad on Sunday.

Subsequently, Pakistan’s foreign ministry released a statement echoing similar sentiments.

However, no further details were shared by either side with regard to Wells visit to Islamabad in near future.

During her visit first visit earlier this month, Wells met Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar in the federal capital.

Last week, Pakistan’s foreign office on Wednesday said that blistering criticism by US President Donald Trump was “disappointing” and denied accusations that it supported terrorist groups.