Good morning ladies is ultimate. Welcome to the Carnegie Endowment. My name is george and i am a Vice President for studies here at the endowment. Its my pleasure to welcome you this morning for a discussion with pakistans relatively new ambassador to the United States , asad majeed khan. While he arrived in his ambassador position in january, he has long and deep experience both in washington, working on u. S. Issues back in the ministry and most recently was serving as ambassador to japan. Before coming here. He has an outstanding sense of not only dynamics with the u. S. , but globally and him particular asian security. We are honored to have you with us. What we will do, i will ask a few questions to get the discussion started. And then we will turn it into a larger discussion. I have invited the ambassador if at any time he wants to ask you all a question or me a question, about what is going on in this very predictable rational environment in which we live in in washington, we are fair game. Everybody should understand that it is meant to be truly a twoway conversation. Ambassador is a talented one so i will focus on Foreign Policy issues. As we get started, i suppose i should ask how you are finding the environment in washington now compared to the years prior when you serve twoyear . But i can imagine that you are too good at your job to want to answer that in a really interesting way. I want to leave on the table to begin with, the first question or comment, what are the challenges like representing pakistan now in mid2019 . Thank you very much george. First of all let me thank you and the Carnegie Endowment for giving me this opportunity to come and share perspectives and positions on issues of interest in washington, d. C. In washington, d. C. I know the audience here a very well informed one. So i am here to say my piece as i am here to hear the information and perspectives from the audience. Yes, i think i have a Long Association with your beautiful country. Not just in washington, i served for over six years in new york as well as our Permanent Mission there. And having served as the acting ambassador in d. C. I think this particular is different from any other capital in the world. Is defined by the incumbent at the white house and the whole team that follows when the administration changes. So even if you know the place very well, and you are well aware of the process also, the city is a different city. When you come to a new and different administration. I of course, despite knowing the city very well, i am trying to find my way around here in d. C. In d. C. And this position as challenging as they can get, particularly for a pakistani ambassador. I can also say that in our world , being accredited as an ambassador to the United States is as good as it can get for any diplomat. I am very honored and feel very privileged to carry my country flag in this very important country which i believe is the center of the world. That is certainly the way people here see it. [ laughter ]let me then focus on south asia. Precisely because we are the center of the world and tend to think less about other parts of the world, even parts of the world that have many more people and many more challenges. I want to turn to pakistan, in particular, the underlying fundamental development, which is pakistan is reportedly going to receive another package of support from the i. M. F. , the International Monetary fund for 6 billion. I believe this is the 13th in the last 30 years of these bailouts. I guess among the questions is, how did the repeated cycles of economic crisis and then i. M. F. Assistance, how do they affect the worlds perception of kind of, pakistans importance and why and how to deal with pakistan . And also, if you have a sense of how this affects the dynamic within pakistan and the sense of priorities within pakistan . That are so often this challenge of economic crisis and turning for help on the balance of payments. I think a lot of attention has been of late given to pakistans resort to the i. M. F. Facility. I think as a member of i. M. F. , we are entitled to have resort to that facility, when we need to. And then, i. M. F. Carries out a professional and Technical Evaluation of the liquidity status of that particular country. And based on the evaluation, determines the size of the package. Based on the history of that country. Yes, i think we face both structural and cyclical problems. We do face economic challenges. And coming to the i. M. F. , is not something where we have unusual. As you just pointed out, we have done that many times in the past. You may also say, pakistan has never defaulted on its debt payments. Our debt to gdp ratio if not better, its as good as other countries at similar level of development. And therefore, coming to the i. M. F. Should not impact or be seen as critically as lately projected in some of the foreign media. As regards, the steps that we need to take, those steps in terms of expanding the domestic tax base, generating our domestic resources, stopping the state enterprises, rationalizing the expanding our exports and enhancing our competitiveness. These are steps. These are tough decisions that the government actually is determined to take independent of what the i. M. F. Conditionalitys might be eventually. Because these are the steps we will require to basically enhance our productivity and competitiveness to basically be able to export more. Because unless and until we are able to do that, i dont think we will be able to have the basis that would basically prevent us from repeatedly coming back to the i. M. F. The budget and some of the steps that the government is taking, are reflective of that determination that the government has to make those difficult choices and decisions we need to make. And its not just the i. M. F. Actually. I think some of our friends and partners have also contributed to that. Including yesterday, the emir of qatar was there also. That is again, a mark of confidence in pakistans economy. Pakistan is no small country. We have no small economy. We still feel that this is a small part of what we owe. And once we are able to put our house in order, i think we will be able to meet our debt obligation as we have done 70 years of our existence. Has the u. S. Been kind of pushing conditionality in ways that the government of pakistan is aware . And if so, are some of the conditions that the u. S. Is pushing different than they would have been in prior years . Is there anything new . Or is it the usual encouragement about expanding the tax base and so on . I dont think the i. M. F. Has its own goals. It has its own technical teams and missions that go across to the countries. Engage with the concern people. And agree on the elements of the package. And that package then goes to the vote. Where whatever package we have agreed to has been agreed to the technical level and is supposed to go to the vote. I dont think that i can i have heard of any specific conditionalitys that the United States has particularly pushed for. So far a technical process. That the i. M. F. And the i. M. F. Personnel are leading. Let me turn to Financial Action. In a sense, the logic of these questions really does focus on the economy and development and challenges to pakistans building its strength in a sense and its wellbeing for its population with the idea as china showed over the decades and india has shown in recent decades. That is also how you have been projecting power and influence and protect your interests. The Financial Action task force for those who dont follow it, it is often called, an International Body that says standards and promotes effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating Money Laundering, financing of terrorist activities and organizations and protecting the integrity of the financial, Global Financial system. This body, i believe 27 countries was meeting in orlando, florida last week. There was also a Campaign Event but i dont think they are related. Last week. It just occurred to me. Pakistan was placed on the gray list a while back. And the risk is it is a prelude to going on the blacklist, what you are put on for failure to take adequate or recommended steps to prevent Money Laundering and facilitation of terrorism. The media reported last week at the meeting in orlando, that pakistan was not put on the blacklist. It reports were that china, turkey and malaysia voted to prevent that. And three out of the 27 are required i believe to prevent that. What i am more interested in, last week, right before the meeting or during the meeting, there were media reports that pakistanis security entities had shut down some terrorist Training Camps or militant Training Camps in the pakistani part of kashmir and taking other steps against some of the designated groups. While that was welcomed by a lot of people, some assumed this was part of heading off the action and thought to put pakistan on the blacklist. But i guess the question is, a lot of people are curious about , have you been instructed that these actions have been taken . So that there were kind of new and more decisive actions taken against these groups in the recent days . Let me say that the pakistan willingly and voluntarily signed on to. Its a program that is a working program. Its a tough set of conditions with a rather short timeline. But actions that we are taking against that is one part. Then, there is this Broad Movement against extremist groups. Against nonstate actors. Against anyone who is or is likely to abuse pakistan space. Facilities or territory against anyone. They are determined to act against all those elements. And this is part of our National Action plan. And if you look at those 20 points covered in the National Action plan, taking action against Terrorism Financing is an important part of that. And against militant organizations. I can say that we have covered a lot of ground. A lot of ground. Just over the last few months. We have actually seized assets of around 700 entities. We have now taken over the facilities run by some of those prescribed entities. The State Government has. We have prescribed about 11 new entities. And we also, just in terms of the terrorist financing cases, the percentage has gone up almost 95 . Similarly, there is 175 increase in the arrests that have been made to that. So there is also almost 52 rise in conviction rates. So really, i think all of this is reflective of the political will that the new government in pakistan has to take on these challenges frontally. We are also as part of that political will, putting in place the infrastructure and the legal framework. And that there is also this determination to see it through , in terms of vigorously implementing those. And i think, george, this is a broad message that i would really like to share with you and through you with your audience. There is a new pakistan. A pakistan where the leadership is determined to make a difference in the lives of the common man. This is a government with a people centered, development focused, and peace oriented agent. There is a clear recognition that without peace, the government will not be able to implement and execute its Development Agent that would not be able to enable our people to realize their dreams and aspirations. Folks in pakistan as much want the jobs, better health, better education for the kids as well as in the United States, your country. That is the new approach. I think if you look at the security situation today in pakistan, we had the lowest number of terrorists incidents in the last 12 years. Last year was the lowest. We hope to actually take that further down this year. This is really reflective of the ground that we have covered. And this also reflects the determination that we have in taking the fight to its logical conclusion. Being a part of that vital effort that we are making, we are not making it because we are obligated to do it under threat. We are doing it because its part of our National Action plan. We feel that what is really important, because you alluded to the media. And unfortunately most of the media reports have come from india. Its really, and i think that is where we need to be careful. Because we should not let any one country basically pursue its own political agenda, through the international institutions. We feel that we have done a lot. We are also clear and determined to do more. But we would not want the jury to be rigged. And there are already predetermined positions. In the statements issued by the indian minister for finance. The statements issued by the other senior leaders. Particularly calling for the blacklisting of pakistan. Ironically, india is also the cochair of the apg. So you put yourself in our position and you ask us as to what what our confidence level be in terms of the fairness of that jury sitting in judgment on our performance . But having said that, we are still taking it very seriously and we are determined to take it to the logical conclusion. The good news is i think china becomes the chair after india. A few more months and you can breathe easier. I wanted what you said is really important. As you know, the people who followed developments in pakistan and the region more broadly over the years will remember president sharif said the same in 2002. And other civilian leaders have also emphasized the importance of peace within the country and fighting terrorism within the country as well as those groups who project violence outward. And yet, things kept happening. So the question that people always ask is, what about the military . Is the military on board . Do they support these policies including the isi . In that regard i want to ask about a change that was reported in the pakistani media, i think is true, last week about the change in the leadership of the interservices intelligence last week, which came almost exactly the same time as the meeting in orlando. As i understand it, where the incumbent, the general who left had only been in the office for eight months. So it was somewhat unusual. Some people are saying this is an example or suggest the way in which the Army Leadership really does want to press hard on these groups. And that was one of the reasons you made a change. I dont want you to commit political suicide by jumping into these issues of personnel within the military. But people in pakistan take this as another example that the government actually serious and that the army is serious about this time going after these groups. First of all, i think eight months should not be views as a yardstick. I think the term of office for some of the senior officials in the United States perhaps have been shorter. [ laughter ] yes. And i would really, dont read too much into that. I mean, these are changes that are made depending on whatever the realities on the ground are. And i think its for you to see what follows. And i think its about walking the talk. And it is about doing things. Verbal commitments. Assurances. Obviously, if one were to go by the description that we keep hearing about the influence that the military has in pakistan, then whatever actions we have taken over the past few years, obviously would not have happened without the active support of the military in pakistan. So really, if i were to look at it in logical terms, really, whatever is happening is happening with the active support of the military leadership. And i can say this. You know, i think that National Action plan and this consensus that we have in pakistan. Because we have suffered more than anyone else. We have borne the brunt and face the consequences. And therefore, there is this recognition that there are actions. Of course, there are situations and there are occasions where some of these actions cannot be made irreversible because of the legal constraints. Some evidence that would make perfect political sense through intelligence, may not be worth anything when brought before the court of law and is subjected to judicial scrutiny. These are the challenges and these are the things that we are trying to be aware. Its a tall order. But you can have my assurance. And i think whatever is happening on the ground, further confirms the ownership of all policies by all the stakeholders. I have just two more questions. Foreign policy and then we will open it up. The next one i am thinking of is pakistan indian relations. Last week was a busy week. Last week i believe the Prime Minister modi and foreign minister sent letters to your Prime Minister. Responding to the earlier letters congratulating them and opening dialogue. Some reports held that these letters back were constructive. We know that pakistan has generally seeks dialogue and wants india to reconstitute dialogue when its cut. I want to ask a different question, what does pakistan want from dialogue with india . Whether it would be through the foreign ministries or back channels . Right now, what would be pakistans central ambition or objective in dialogue with india . You know, i think there has never been as big a vacuum in terms of conversation and dialogue with india as we have now. We are two nuclear powers. India is the second largest country in the world. We are the fifth or sixth largest country in the world. Both of us have a huge military machine. You know, i think its only natural that our two countries stay engaged. And there are conflicts. There are disputes between our two countries. That the new government, and i will come back to what i said earlier, i think there is a consistent backing that you see in terms of our desire and our quest for peace with india. Trust me, dont take it in any way as a sign of weakness. But it is born out of this recognition that these country whose people and populations have their aspirations, have tremendous potential. And the Prime Minister, even before taking the oath he said, addressing Prime Minister modi, we dont need to fight. There are lots of people out there that are living below the poverty line. We would want to resolve issues. Kashmir has been has been the core issue that has been relations between our two countries. India believes that terrorism is another issue that we need to end. And that is what our Prime Minister and our leadership, the National Security committee and some of our statements that clearly said that we want to abolish. And if you look at the train of events, like despite the fact that the Prime Minister ran a campaign which was in some parts directed at pakistan, our Prime Minister was one of the first four leaders to congratulate him. It was followed by a letter. And we have of course, media has been speculating all kinds of things. And i think that the minister of Foreign Affairs has actually, they had messages and exchanged between leaders and that is a normal thing. We are not hearing back from india is the response to the gestures we are making. And that is the challenge and that is the vacuum which is for a country of the size that we have and the challenges that we face. I think that we would like india to respond to those gestures and to take the dialogue forward. Last question. In my initial questions, i want to turn to afghanistan. Were pakistan has obviously borne the brunt of so much of the conflict for the last 40 years in afghanistan. U. S. Special envoy has been pushing for peace talks with the taliban. One of the central questions and all of this is whether and how pakistan can help . For a long time, there has been a view by some in this town that pakistan could fix it if they really wanted to. I think people who know the situation always doubted that its that easy. But nonetheless, there is a biting question about whether and how pakistan is prepared to facilitate push towards a peaceful resolution or otherwise. And i know that you cannot speak for the taliban. But on the basis of pakistans long term interactions with the taliban, do you have a sense of what kind of settlement taliban leaders are looking for within afghanistan . In other words, if there are intraafghan talks, what is it the taliban and are seeking as kind of a way to move forward. Internal modus the bandai . And in that case, what can pakistan and others due to help bring that about . If you could shed light on that . First of all, i think pakistan consistently believed that there is no not military solution to the conflict. It is as you just said, a very complicated issue. It has a long history unfortunately. There were at least three generations in afghanistan who have not seen anything but conflict and war. Clearly, now in terms of what the taliban and want, i would say that the ambassador is perhaps better informed than i am or many folks in pakistan by virtue of the six or seven rounds of conversations that he has had. But i can tell you that we have made a serious and sincere effort in facilitating in whatever way we can. The peace process. The reconfiguration process. We also believe that this is not just for us. It is a shared responsibility where other countries in the region and players also need to contribute. And we also believe that violence is something that our Prime Minister, we have been saying this rapidly and we have already made it very clear statement condemning violence urging the taliban the spring offensive on all sides to engage in dialogue. We also believe that without there being a comprehensive intraafghan dialogue, we will not have sustainable peace in afghanistan. And that is why only yesterday, in pakistan, we hosted quite a large number of afghan leaders. And the foreign minister statement, i invite you to look at the statement. I think it really come pensively lays out what our expectations are. Obviously, the games that afghanistan has made over the last 20 years, i think need to be preserved. Based on the human rights front , based on the democracy font. And there are those elements that they are looking at. We will continue and we have made it clear that we will not let no one use our territory. And we expect that no one else would use the afghan territory against pakistan. And we would not want to basically bring the afghan war into pakistan. So these are really the broad principles that we are looking at. And we are adhering to. If you had asked me this question about six months early or eight months ago frankly, i could never have actually guessed that there will be a day where the u. S. And the taliban and would spend 16 days in a room talking about this. And as someone said the other day that, i think the ambassador publicly praised pakistan. And i was telling some friends that if the ambassador is praising pakistan for cooperation, we must have earned it. I think you are right. This is one of those examples where a Republican Administration can do things that a Democratic Administration cannot. All the interaction. I just want to follow up. Without mentioning india, you alluded to the importance of other countries, innocence using afghanistan to project violence into pakistan. The future of afghanistan, is that something where you think india and pakistan can have productive engagement if you get the diplomatic process rolling again . You know, again, what is important for the world to be wary of the spoilers. The spoilers to in a country you have seen conflict for too long. You have groups that like perpetual conflict. And therefore they are the ones who get to lose if that conflict is over. And then there are those who perhaps benefit indirectly from the conflict. So its very important that all these factors are and all those who are part of those conversations are aware of that and mindful of that. I dont think there should be any private exclusion from the process. And whosoever is in it in good faith and seriously, needs to be given the opportunity to contribute. What we are going to do is, i am going to ask you who would like to ask a question to raise your hand. And i will call on you. And then when my colleagues bring you the microphone, please introduce yourselves. Lets start. Let me see have to start with. Okay. Why dont we start with this gentleman and then we will go over there. It was great listening to you. I am visiting and i Teach International relations in india. To a common man, after events happen like the moon by attack or for instance these allegations it seems they provided dossier and then what happens after that . Its always stuck after that. And it doesnt respond or doesnt anticipate the kind of invitation that pakistan gives . Where do you think a problem lies in the series of events that happened after every unfortunate incident . Thank you. To be able to address this, and its a fair question. An important question. And i think for where we are saying that its very important for our two countries to sit across the table. We even offered to have a dialogue on terrorism only. And we offered india that we already for you to provide intelligence, you provide evidence. We are going to work with you in following up. And to track and trace those who may have been responsible. But unfortunately, the government wanted to make a political point. And instead they chose to send their aircraft across pakistan. And when i speak to you today here, i also have the advantage of hindsight. Look at those claims. 300 terrorists killed. One f16 down. Its not what we said. You look at the independent reports that are independent of those who say that none of that was true. Really i think and the dossier that india shared, we have examined that. We have given our considered views back to india. We have yet to hear back from them. On mumbai also. Look at the training events and the sequence of events and where things got stuck. Because as an attorney, i can tell you that i cannot present any evidence which the defense does not have the right to crossexamine. It will not be admissible as evidence in the court of law. And for this precise plea, its where you actually had confessions. Our citizens were killed there. And i think indiana lives and pakistani lives are precious lives. And we must hold people to account or whenever those lives are lost. The same argument was used. The moon by trial. We have not been able to get the evidence. Had he been made to appear before the judicial tribunal in pakistan, that would have enabled our people and our defense and everybody else to crossexamine. And cross judge the evidence that was available. Really, i think, you are right. Its my statement versus someone elses statement. And we are in this vicious cycle of throwing back. The ball is in our court, the ball is in their court. And he keeps going back and forth. That is why and i think the Prime Minister is somebody who is consistent. Even before he took over. As you said, the military was not on board and they are definitely on board now. What is it that is stopping india from reciprocating the initiatives that pakistan is consistently taking . We have practically did it unilaterally. We have suffered from terrorism and we understand the pain of those who suffer from terrorism anywhere. And we are ready to sit and address those challenges. The gentleman in the orange shirt or coral. What is that . Salmon pink. Thank you. I love salmon. Indeed. Thank you for your time. I am a student who just graduated and im doing my studies. I was looking at china and india and south Asian International affairs. I am interested to hear your opinion about, is pakistan has a large amount of investment and input from china. We were talking about china taking over the association. I was interested to know how you think that will influence potential pakistani and indian relations. I can tell you that pakistans trade relationship with china is much more smaller than what indias trade relationship with china is. The investments that you are alluding to our investments that started since 2014. And we are grateful and thankful. China came to us when no one else was frankly looking at us. But if you look at the total portfolio of investments in pakistan, its just part of several of many other investments coming from other countries. Of course it is pakistan, is open not just to chinese. We are open to investments from all other friendly countries. And some of these Economic Zones are there and they are open for countries to invest. I dont know how because, frankly, in the world today, this notion that kind of dates back to the cold war days, you would only trade with your allies and partners. And that you would not trade with your competitor. Is no longer relevant or true. Countries are trading with their socalled allies as well as with their competitors. And even anniversaries. Look at some of the biggest trading relationships in the world today. Look at some of the biggest investment relationships in the world today. Really, i think pakistan is fortunate to receive investments from china. But that does not mean that we are close to others. And we would welcome that. And no one needs to basically decide their assault on options of having relationships with other countries based on what they are doing with their other countries. These are not mutually exclusive relationships. I would like to push that further in terms of our relationships with the United States also. We would not have pakistan, for us, our relationship with the United States is a very important and consequential relationship. Our economic relationship is much older. But the relationship we have, you dont want this to be seen through the afghan prism or the indian prism and thing that we are not an important country in on right. Our relationship with china and even where we were the most allied of allies of the United States we traded with china. I really dont think that it needs to be seen that way. And india and of the countries should actually look at that. I am glad you asked the question. I think it is a point that really needs to be emphasized. Especially as politics and discourse in the u. S. Focuses more on more with competition with china. People mention belton road as an example. What the ambassador was saying is people in many other countries where china is investing and doing the belton road, we would like other people to be investing in our infrastructure also. And we would actually like to diversify and more is better. Its not like people are kind of willingly leaving themselves to chinese investment. We tend to lose that perspective here. In part because investment does not flow from government policy as directly. But just emphasize the importance of what the ambassador was saying. I want to switch sides right in front of you. We will take a couple. We will move to the front. Thank you for a wonderful program. Do you think how pakistan managed a political and economic crisis . Thank you. So as far as i understand. He is listed under 1267. And pakistan is fulfilling all its legal obligations under the un sanctions regime. Which does not involve handing over anyone to anybody. About the economic challenges, as i have responded to judge earlier, about the cyclical and structural aspects of the challenges that we face and how the government is determined government is determined to deal with those in terms of putting our house in order. Gentleman there and then were going to move up here. Thank you so much. Thank you. Sir, its about pakistan and United States, diplomatic relations. So many things are going on like suspension of security and strict restrictions. But i just want to ask about travel restrictions. Including you are facing travel and can you not travel more than 45 miles. So can you tell us the reason . What is going on . Is it still active . That travel restriction . Secondly, pakistan is a free media society. I worked with them for many, many years. Can you tell us the reason of suspending the services of the Media Services in pakistan . Thank you. What was first question. These are agreements we have with the u. S. Government. And there are issues on both sides that were trying to resolve in terms of dealing with this 25mile limit that we have on the movement of diplomats. And we hope to resolve this and some of the other issues that you eluded to in terms of our diplomatic engagements. On the advice of america, the postal service, i am, frankly, i will not want to comment on something that im not aware of. In terms of the restrictions, i can tell you and being the heir correspondent here, i think you know it better than many in this room. In terms of the freedoms that our media has in pakistan, you know. And the channels, the range of subjects, the extent of criticism and we have been on, you know, in the government as Civil Servants and bureaucrats, you know, we experiencing experience that on a daily basis. So its really, i think, sometimes when i hear about the challenges in regard to the media, i say this that you compare what we have and some of most important stories that are normally broken in pakistan are basically broken by pakistani media. And there are no bounds in terms of the extent to which the subjects can be covered on the national network. And the talk shows over there, you know, i mean, would beat some of the most exciting channels here in the United States. This lady here in the second row. Thank you for the wonderful talk. Im visiting from pakistan. My question is notwithstanding the risks associated with the outsourcing Crisis Management to a third party, india and pakistan has largely been dependent on a Third Party Intervention to resolve the conflicts be it 2001, 2008 and the recent one. Traditionally the United States had been that third party who had played a larger role in diffusing the tension. How do you see that role has evolved, particularly in the recent crisis post obama. How the u. S. Was different before and was it really late . And are there new contenders for the third party which were visible in the recent crisis, particularly i ask this question considering the lesser interest of the Current Administration in events happening in south asia. Thats an interesting question. I think, first of all, we are look forward to a day where india and pakistan dont really have to depend on a third party. Tlaen a there are locations and there have been several where friends and partners had to enter because those tracks fail to deliver. And that is precisely what we want to do, what we are trying to do and all the things that the Prime Minister has made and the Prime Minister of pakistan are making are consistent with the desire to be able to sit facetoface across the table and be able to address all the challenges that we face. And youre also right that depending on each administrations depending on each president s personal preferences, and depending on the broader regional dynamic, the size, scale, and level of u. S. Involvement has varied, you know, for instance during president clintons time and president senior bushs time. I can tell you even in the pro obama crisis also, i think u. S. Played an important role. I think that is what is really important is for the International Players and consequential powers and the consequential power like the United States to maintain you evaluate the situation on the ground and do not do things that are construed in india or elsewhere as endorsement of the choices that theyre making. Clearly, you know, sometimes you have a duty to speak and the right to remain silent, you know. So when you dont say or speak, it is construed as an endorsement. And the earlier statements did, i would say, give that impression that as if, you know, u. S. Is in at least the near media spin, even if the u. S. Government and the state did not do that, they construe it as ab endorsement as a call for, you know, escalation. And thats where i believe that still there is more that the United States and other countries should do. This lady back here. Hi, thank you. I used to be at the state department. Im interested in two questions. One of them is can you give me insight into what is happening with sardari and shareef in the future with the current situations are complicated . And then the second situation is, do you have insight into how the government is going to approach repatriating all of the amble pakistani assets outside of pakistan, what steps they might take to get some of that back . On the first one, i really dont know. I wish i had a crystal ball to tell you what will happen. There are for those that dont follow pakistani soap opera, basically, youre asking about the legal moves against both former civilian leaders . Yeah. Yeah. I know. Im talking about the rest of the people including those out in television land. I mean, these are, you know, matters that are in court. Well let the courts decide. And i really dont have anything to speculate on that. In terms of i would say rather than repatriating, i would say in our National Development effort. And i that i is something that is a very high priority with the Prime Minister of pakistan. I think this government in a way is unique in terms of its popularity and its acceptability with the pakistani over seas. The Prime Minister himself is very keen to go after them if our National Development efforts. Were hooking at various ways in which, you know, and in this country in particular, i can tell you that we have a very vibrant bac vibrant pakistaniamerican community here. Many of them are professionals, doctors. Around 20,000 doctors. Thai i. T. Specialists and others and people who have had Productive Lives and now are ready and willing to go back and contribute, you know, occasionally. And those are the people that we would like to engage. And then similarly, pakistaniamericans are also looking at investment possibilities in pakistan. I can tell you that, you know, with improved security with Better Energy supplies, the crisis of energy and since you track pakistan, you will know the kind of things we use to suffer. The infrastructure has improved tremendously. So that really, i think, prepares or has prepared pakistan to go to the next level of industrialization. And thats where these special Economic Zones that we are building in pakistan would welcome investments if overseas pakistanis and particularly from the United States. And i can also im happy to share this with you. Companies like exxonmobil, even ihop has gone to pakistan. And not just that, i think another very important step that the government has taken is to focus on tourism. The reality has changed. I can show you data showing that islamabad is the safest city in the wider neighborhood. So we want those peaceful, travel advicery that will enable people from overseas. You know we really need to debunk. In many cases, when i go to meet some businessmen and i tell them that we are the third or fourth largest English Speaking country, we are the fifth or the sixth largest country in the world with a huge middle class, they look at me with their eyes and mouth open. They really dont and those who know that, they only know the bad things about pakistan. So that information deficit needs to be plugged. Were focusing on promoting tourism. We have completely liberalized our visa policy. So a u. S. Citizen, not pakistaniamerican, all u. S. Citizens can actually apply for up to a fiveyear multiple visa. The u. S. Businessmen can actually get 30 days visa on arrival, business visas on arrival. And we have about 57 countries that are now part of the visa on arrival system. And all countries are now part of this. So we want to promote religious tourism which is, again, a reflection of the greater religious tolerance that we want to promote in pakistan including the celebrations for the 550th anniversary of so these are the ways in which the education, it is investment, it is bringing professionals who can basically contribute to universities. This is not an issue. Most of our universities have english as a medium of instruction. And people are surprised when i tell them that we are a common law country. We are, you know, Property Rights and the statutes and the pleadings are in english. They really dont know about these things. So these are the ways in which we would want to promote greater awareness about the possibilities and opportunities in pakistan. Lets come to this gentleman here. Then well work our way back. Hello. My name is alex. Im a reporter with the russian news agency. Russia has signed a memorandum of understanding with iran and possible construction of natural gas pipeline from iran to india through pakistan. I imagine such a power play would raise a double red flag in u. S. As in other regions of the world and the United States are usually concerned about any russian pipeline projects, sometimes in the case of the north stream and they are openly advocating cancelling such projects and threaten sanctions. Has this issue come up in your conversations in washington with your american colleagues . And if so, what you are hearing from them . Thank you. It has not come in our conversations. I regret i wrote about this 15 years ago. I thought it was a great idea. Anyway, lets go to the back. He is very energetic in the back. Yeah. This is ali. Im a visiting fellow. Thank you, ambassador, for an excellent talk. You rightly talk about pakistan and any other world country. So this brings us to the point of how can pakistaniamerican relations be hyphenated from the indian prism. So our Prime Minister, he has a great deal of focus on resetting paku. S. Relations to allow both countries to have Mutual Respect for each other and also his vision of diplomatic diplomacy which you touched on briefly during one of your answers, my main question is we have oftentimes seen the u. S. Meddling into things which are not theirs. Hike we saw this the debates about Tactical Nuclear weapons or frankly this question about why did we change our isa commander . So are we trending towards given that you hold the d. C. Place, are we trending towards some kind of a reset where this mute aol respect and nonent firns in some matters which matters pertain to pakistan or u. S. , are we trending to a relationship with both two governments can actually develop a very cordial investment, friendly, business friendly relationship that is, as you know, away from the f1 and indian lenses that we have normally have had a relationship with. Thats where we want to be. And i think i see good tidings. One very important convergence because obviously i have spent a hot of time in the city. And i am aware of the deep skepticism also in some of the quarters about things we do or we dont. But at the same time, i think the convergence where the president of the United States wants to see peace in afghanistan. Prime minister, we have a Prime Minister who has been a long standing advocate of the resolution of that conflict through peace. So, you know, its really important to start by working on things where you do have that convergence. I think the other area where we see a lot of potential on, you know, when unfortunately terrorist incident takes place or a soldier gets killed, it gets a lot of Media Attention and coverage. A major u. S. Company goes to pakistan, it doesnt really get the kind of attention in the news. So it doesnt sell that well. But in the reality, what that contributed to the relationship is much more than the image related challenges that we face. So our job really is while security peace has been an important part of this relationship, we really need to move out and hook at all of that in business and investment. And there, are as i said, tremendous possibilities and opportunities. And you know we may look as small because we are happen to be sandwiched between china and india. But we are a significant country. And there are tremendous possibilities and opportunities with the excess that we have to send to asia and middle east, strategic location that we have. So that gives and then i say this to the american government. You know, because even our i cant think of a family worth any influence in pakistan that does not have at least one blood relation as a u. S. Citizen. Every other or third civil serve anlt in pakistan is either educate order trained in this country. Every third or Fourth Military man in pakistan is either educated or trained in this country. English is what we are a democracy. So this are values. There are systems. There are laws that people you walk into any office in pakistan, you are likely to come across someone with whom you will be able to communicate. And i say this. The value of this is not really appreciated. As someone who has served in a country where they dont speak english, you know, the blessing of speaking english and to be able to communicate is so that these are the natural, i would say, anchors that we have. And there is skepticism. But i think what United States us is much more than what divides us. And there is this will and determination because we think that this is an important and consequential relationship. We want to get to that point. Thats where we want to go. Well come up this way. Can you change your mind. Im with voice of america. Excellency, interNational Security experts here and abroad, they expressed concern about the isis movement or their shifting from syria and iraq to afghanistan. And they fear that if future isis will be a great trap to south asia. How concerned, how prepared is the new pakistan, new government in pakistan to the challenge of isis in south asia . This is something that makes everyone join heads in terms of trying to deal with these spaces wherever they are. And particularly in afghanistan. Because if you look at the ideology that isis sells and the narrative that they have, i have a feeling that their narrative resonates more in places and in countries where muslims are a minority and there is this, you know, perception of the persecution in countries like, for instance, in pakistan. There is very limited scope for them to basically find a toehold because the already the view, the narrative that they are building and projecting would not hold any ground. And the other is those ungoverned spaces that might exist that will give them the option of setting up the shops there. And that is one reason why everyone in the broader region is very keen to see peace return in afghanistan and similarly even on our side also, you know, the fatah integration into mainstream pakistan is historic step. And that again is basically designed to bring all our citizens into the mainstream, into the economic mainstream, into the legal mainstream and mill mainstream in terms of the cross bottom movement also. You know, pakistan has already built a 1,000 wall. Its a sensitive issue in the city. But we have actually built a 1,000 kilometer fence on our border with afghanistan from our own resources. And were determined to basically take it to its basically to complete it. The idea really is to address our concerns of movement from the other side and the concerns that perhaps there are elements going from our side. So we would like Water Management will be a challenge. And we would like to, you know, deal with that effectively and then also help afghanistan achieve peace because once they have peace within, you know, that will also help them take care of those spaces and places where there may this possibility. Statistically also and some of the recent attacks that we have, you know, had in pakistan, could be basically traced back to some of those elements who are spread around the border around pakistan and afghanistan. Hi. Im also a visiting fellow. So i have a question on iran. What is islamabads view on the on going tension between the u. S. And iran . And if the situation escalates, how will islamabad approach the whole issue considering its this balancing sawed qsaudi ira ties. It seems like a Foreign Policy issue for pakistan. How do you see sth what is your take on that . I dont think that is an issue. Prime minister was in tehran. The foreign minister was in pakistan. And we have always had very good ties with saudi arabia. And we also had good ties with iran. And like most other countries in the region, of course we are concerned. With any possible escalation. And we have been urging all concerned, you know, to find and dissolve the issues within the framework of International Law and through dialogue and, yes, we are concerned. We would like to see it resolved sooner than later. And we have our handsful already. On at least two fronts. So that is one area we would like to see peace continue. Partnership verse secure america. So since partition, theres been tections between muslims in the region and the rise and power since 2014 and is the party of self proclaimed internationalists, how does the pakistan approach to dealing with members of the bjp changed as theyve become increasingly internationalist and theres been, you know, more and more conflict twin hindus and muslims in the region. Obviously, its not for me to speak about how and people of bjp, you know, their choices that they make, the democratic choice thats they make. And the political ideology or leaders that they elect. It is really for those people. I can say that, you know, india is a huge country. Its a very diverse country. And when you seek to frame it in any particular way, then that creates the stress that will be felt by those that are not part of the framework, whatever framework is being advocated and pushed. And in pakistan, we i can say that we are coming back from that point where we are determined to create ordeal with extremism. We are taking measures to deal with fundamentalism. And we are trying to go back to the plural society, accepting society that we were. This is society that i grew up in. So these divisions will create consequences. In pakistan, sometimes what is a consequence is the fact that sometimes extremism across the border provides oxygen to our own extremisted also. Thats where our concern is. I think besides that, that is for the people of india to make those choices. Im sure they will make those choices in a democratic way. Thank you for the opportunity. This organization has been working last 20 plus years to promote Good Relationship with u. S. And pakistan. I would like to ask the ambassador what are the latest moves and plans to increase u. S. Companies and improve investments in pakistan . Thank you. This is one of the highest priorities i have as an ambassador, frankly. And we are going out to other states to other cities informing people and as i said, possibilities and opportunities in pakistan. People are looking at it in an open mind. And so far i have received a lot of good response. There is a usbbc delegation going to pack stab next month. We will also be working on organizing the business opportunities. In september, we are organizing a pakistantech summit. In the Silicon Valley with the support and cooperation of some u. S. Companies and some leading Pakistani Companies active in Silicon Valley. We are also planning to do one here in washington, d. C. , just to sensitize people about the possibilities in pakistan. So obviously, this is just one part of what we can do. The real action is on the ground. Where the Prime Minister has personally committed to steer and oversea the ease of doing business, improving the ease of doing business in pakistan. Enhancing pakistans competitiveness. We are determined to basically improve for instance 47 text streams, government brought them down to 16 already. Similarly, if you wish to register a company in one day. So these are the things that would make it easier for people and see for themselves because i said this again. You know, one of the most effective way of debufrpging the myths about pakistan and which is, obviously, our biggest strength is the hospitality and generosity of our people. And this notion of, you know, people hating americans is complete nonsense. You can feel once you go there, you experience the country and you meet the people and the kind of welcome you really get and then obviously they will and because one of the reasons that were emphasizing that is that helps us open the window. Cheerily, you know, like for instance, vietnam was a Tourist Destination before it became a investment destination. Thailand was a tourism destination. So we would like the u. S. Franchises to come also. Because Everything Else is there. And thats what and how i propose to i will need the support of the pakistaniamerican who are well placed and well resourced. And that hopeful note, i want to conclude. I want to thank all of you for coming. I want to ask you to join me in thanking ambassador khan. Cspans washington journal live every day. Coming up tuesday morning, two members of the house Foreign Affairs committee discuss the on going tensions between the u. S. And iran. First, Pennsylvania Republican congressman scott perry. Then were joined by virginia democratic congresswoman abigail spanberger. Also from aarps Public Policy institute, leigh pervis will discuss nut report on specialty Prescription Drug prices and how the increases affected consumers and employers. And be sure to watch washington journal thursday and friday following the first president ial deeps of the 2020 race. Joining the conversation both mornings with your phone calls Facebook Comments and tweets. Tuesday, live testimony from David Pekoske on current vulnerabilities at his agency. Hell be joined by fellow government officials appearing live before the House Oversight and reform committee. That hearing set to start at 10 00 a. M. Eastern on cspan3. And then wednesday, a hearing on the office of special counsels recommend that is President Trump fire white house counsell counsellor kel qui a counsellor kellyanne conway. That hearing also held by the House Oversight and reform committee. It gets under way live wednesday at 10 00 a. M. Eastern on cspan3. The reviews are in for cspans the president s book, it topped the New York Times new and note worthy column. They call it a mile post in the evolving and ever changing reputations of our president s. And from the new york journal of books, the president s makes a fast engrossing read. Read about how noted president ial hiss tore yafrpgs rank the best and worst chief executives from George Washington to barack obama. Explore the life events that shaped our leaders, challenges they faced, and the legacies they left behind. Cspan the president s is available as a hard cover or ebook today wherever books are sold. Up next, a Senate Commerce subcommittee hears testimony from u. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission members on hazard quus products and consumer safety. They spoke about recent recalls including a fisher price sleeper that was associated with the deaths of more than 30 infants. This is about an hour and 15 minutes. Good morning, everyone. The subcommittee will come to order. Welcome to todays oversight hearing on consumer Product Safety Commission. Thank you to all the commissioners for being with us today. I am meezed that were having an on time start. We have votes at 11 30. There will only be one round of questions. That doesnt mean the witnesses cant pretend they dont have all the answers in the f