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US and Pakistan vow better ties | |
(about 12 hours later) | |
The US and Pakistan have promised to start a new partnership in an effort to overcome "years of misunderstandings", the US secretary of state has said. | |
"It's a new day," Hillary Clinton said after talks in Washington with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi. | |
Mr Qureshi meanwhile said he expected the US to pay by the end of June nearly $2bn in military aid it owes Pakistan. | |
Mistrust between the two countries has reached new lows in recent months. | |
This has been fuelled by a surge in US drone strikes near Pakistan's border with Afghanistan, the BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan says. | |
For its part, the US wants Pakistan to do more to combat militants. | |
Nuclear issue | Nuclear issue |
At the end of the first of two days of high-level talks, Mrs Clinton and Mr Qureshi announced that the US-Pakistan relationship had evolved into a partnership covering a range of security and development programmes. | |
"Today, I am a happy man, a satisfied man," Mr Qureshi told reporters. "We have upgraded the dialogue." | |
We have made it very clear that this strategic dialogue is in Pakistan's interests and in the United States' interest Hillary ClintonUS Secretary of State | |
He said a "substantial" amount of the outstanding military aid would be paid by the end of April, with the remainder coming by the end of June - the same time as an IMF performance review is due on its $7.6bn loan package for Pakistan. | |
He also said the US had agreed to put Pakistani requests for military equipment on a "fast track" as they increased security co-operation. | |
Mrs Clinton said the dialogue meant the expansion of the current security focus to include energy, development, education and agriculture. | |
She expressed hope that the new partnership "stands the test of time", but cautioned that it would not always be easy. | |
"Our countries have had our misunderstandings and disagreements in the past, and there are sure to be more disagreements in the future." | |
Mrs Clinton insisted the US was committed to helping Pakistan with its chronic power shortages. | |
However when asked about a possible deal on civilian nuclear co-operation deal, like the one it signed with India, she merely said: "We will listen to and engage with our Pakistani partners." | |
Pakistan's military chief (left) is taking part in the talks | Pakistan's military chief (left) is taking part in the talks |
While some sort of understanding between on two sides is possible, any concrete nuclear accord is unlikely, our correspondent says. | |
Continued fears over Pakistan's proliferation record remain a major stumbling block. In particular, US officials want to question Dr AQ Khan, the disgraced former head of Pakistan's nuclear programme. | Continued fears over Pakistan's proliferation record remain a major stumbling block. In particular, US officials want to question Dr AQ Khan, the disgraced former head of Pakistan's nuclear programme. |
Dr Khan admitted to being involved in the transfer of nuclear technology to countries such as Iran and North Korea. | |
Earlier this week Pakistan's government sought court permission to question Dr Khan over what it says is new information about his role in proliferation. | |
The application is being heard in the high court in Lahore. | |
Pakistan and the US are holding a week-long "strategic dialogue". | |
Pakistan's army chief Gen Ashfaq Kayani and the head of the ISI intelligence agency Lt-Gen Shuja Pasha are also taking part. |