Islamabad, Aug 16 (INP): As US-China relations grow increasingly tense over Taiwan, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif says Pakistan will be “happy” to play a positive role to bridge their differences in the interest of peace and stability in the world, if the two parties so desire.

“If China and the US so desire, Pakistan would be happy to play a positive role to bridge their differences, as we had done in the past,” he said in response to a question during a wide-ranging interview with Newsweek, while referring to Islamabad’s pivotal role in bringing the two countries together half a century ago for talks that served as the foundation for their modern relationship.

Newsweek Senior’s Foreign Policy Writer Tom O’Connor, who conducted the interview via e-mail, pointed out that the Pakistani leader spoke about the need for greater international cooperation, the role Pakistan could play in preventing the world from sliding into an ever deeper set of crises, and other key issues.

PM Sharif not only expressed his views on the stark deterioration of relations between the United States and China, but also on his stance about Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.

Closer to home, Sharif discussed the turmoil plaguing neighbouring Afghanistan, the unresolved Kashmir dispute, and an uptick in militant attacks within Pakistan’s own borders that threatens its own national security at a time of domestic political challenges.

“The present government is truly national in nature,” Sharif said, referring to the coming together of the country’s all political force on an agreed-upon national agenda of economic reform and stabilization.

In the interview, he said Pakistan has traditionally maintained good relations with China and the United States, pointing out that historically, it was Pakistan that acted as a bridge in opening up the relationship between the two countries.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP