ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN—Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar on Friday expressed firm confidence that ongoing issues with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), a key government ally, would be amicably resolved through dialogue.
Addressing the National Assembly, Senator Dar called for an immediate “ceasefire,” urging both sides to halt verbal attacks. He assured the House that the concerns raised by PPP members—who had staged a temporary walkout earlier to protest remarks made by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz against PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari—were neither serious nor unresolvable. He committed to addressing the matter within the next few days.
Dar confirmed he had already met with senior PPP leader Naveed Qamar, along with the Speaker and other ministers, to hear their grievances. He stressed the commitment of both the PML-N and PPP to mutual understanding, noting that similar issues had always been settled peacefully in the past. He attributed the current delay in final resolution to the travel schedules of President Asif Ali Zardari, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, and the recent return of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif from his foreign visit.
Diplomatic Briefing and US Ties
Shifting focus, Dar also briefed the House on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s high-profile bilateral engagement with US President Donald Trump at the White House, which was also attended by Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir.
The Deputy Prime Minister noted that the exchanges were cordial. He highlighted that President Trump had expressed appreciation for Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts and acknowledged his own role in facilitating the Pakistan-India ceasefire understanding in May. Crucially, the leaders agreed to expand trade and invite increased US investments across critical sectors, including agriculture, IT, mines & minerals, and energy.
Dar also provided a detailed account of Prime Minister Sharif’s diplomatic outreach on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), which included one-on-one meetings with the Austrian Chancellor, the Kuwaiti Crown Prince, the Sri Lankan President, and the Bangladeshi Chief Adviser, among others, underscoring Pakistan’s active role in global and regional diplomacy.
