WASHINGTON:
The White House on Thursday said that no visit of United States President Donald Trump was scheduled to Pakistan “at this time” after widespread reports of a trip.
The White House dismissed the rumours. “A trip to Pakistan has not been scheduled at this time,” a White House official said.
The reaction came after two local television news channels reported on Thursday that the US president is expected to visit Pakistan in September, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Foreign Office spokesperson said he was not aware of Trump’s expected visit. The two TV news channels said that Trump would also visit India after arriving in Islamabad in September.
US-Pakistan relations saw a major boost when Trump hosted Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir at the White House last month in an unprecedented meeting.
A US embassy spokesperson in Islamabad told Reuters, “We have nothing to announce,” and said that the White House might be able to provide confirmation on the president’s schedule.
Pakistan’s information ministry didn’t respond to a Reuters request for a comment. India is due to host the summit of the so-called Quad countries this year but dates for the meeting have not been announced yet.
The Quad grouping includes the US, India, Australia and Japan and is focused on countering China’s rise in the Indo-Pacific region.
