ISLAMABAD : Special assistant to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Tariq Fatemi is expected to leave for the United States to meet with officials of the US President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team, sources told on Saturday.
Trump, who is scheduled to take the oath on January 20, has already set up a provisional team, encouraging foreign leaders and officials to visit his headquarters in New York for familiarisation meetings.
According to sources, Fatemi will meet some members of the provisional team besides interacting with the new lawmakers elected last month.
The visit follows a telephonic conversation between Prime Minister Sharif and Trump on Wednesday during which the US leader expressed his desire to continue a productive relationship with Pakistan.
Sources further told that, in the second phase, two senior federal ministers from Pakistan will visit the United States in December and January to meet Trump administration and key members of the government.
Earlier on Thursday, White House spokesperson Josh Ernest said the relations between the U.S. and Pakistan, particularly over the last eight years, have not been smooth, particularly in the aftermath of the raid on Pakistani soil that killed Osama bin Laden.
Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesperson had stated this week that Pakistan attaches great importance to its relations with the United States and would continue to work with the new US administration to further strengthen bilateral relations.