Obama Calls for Closer Ties with Pakistan
by VOA News October 22, 2015
U.S. President Barack Obama says he wants to deepen ties with Pakistan during a meeting Thursday with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at the White House.
'Obviously the United States and Pakistan have a long standing relationship, work and cooperate on a whole host of issues,' said Obama. 'We are looking forward to using this meeting as an opportunity to further deepen the relationship between the United States and Pakistan.'
Sharif noted the depth of bilateral ties, saying, 'the Pakistan-America relations stand over 70 years, and it is my endeavor to further strengthen and solidify this relationship.'
Peace talks
Obama is expected to press Sharif to revive peace talks between Kabul and Afghanistan's former hardline Islamist rulers who have continued a relentless insurgency since being overthrown by U.S. forces in late 2001 for sheltering al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden.
Obama announced last week that he plans to keep 5,500 U.S. troops in Afghanistan beyond 2016, breaking his long-stated pledge to bring nearly all U.S. forces out of the country by the end of next year.
The administration has also pressured Islamabad to crack down on other radical Islamic groups such as the Haqqani network, which is based in Pakistan.
Nuclear stockpile
Obama will also try to convince Sharif to agree to limit the scope of Pakistan's nuclear weapons stockpile. A new report published Thursday by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists estimates that Pakistan's arsenal could expand from a current estimate of 130 warheads to 250 warheads within the next decade, making Pakistan the world's fifth largest nuclear weapons state behind the United States, Russia, China and France.
The two leaders last met at the Oval Office in October of 2013.
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