Pakistan Envoy Meets US House Armed Services Chairman, Discusses Regional Security and Bilateral Cooperation

Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, Rizwan Saeed Sheikh, held an important meeting with Chairman of the US House Armed Services Committee, Mike Rogers, as part of his ongoing engagement with senior American leadership.

According to an official statement, the meeting included detailed discussions on Pakistan–US relations and ways to further strengthen bilateral cooperation. Ambassador Sheikh described 2025 as a year marked by notable achievements in ties between the two countries and expressed optimism that cooperation would expand further in 2026.

Outlining Pakistan’s national security perspective, the ambassador said the country’s focus had evolved from geopolitics to geoeconomics, reflecting broader priorities related to development and long-term stability.

Referring to developments in May 2025, Ambassador Sheikh warned that India’s “irresponsible and aggressive behaviour” had created serious risks for regional security by lowering the threshold for escalation. He noted that rivalry between two nuclear-armed neighbours had moved beyond conventional military domains to advanced technologies, calling the deployment of dual-capable weapons such as the BrahMos missile in a region of 1.7 billion people deeply concerning.

He cautioned that actions based on misperceptions or miscalculations could have grave consequences for regional peace and stability. The ambassador said the May 2025 crisis had shown that, despite India’s stated Indo-Pacific focus, a significant share of its military capabilities remained directed against Pakistan.

Ambassador Sheikh also acknowledged the political foresight and personal engagement of the US president in helping manage and defuse the May crisis, describing the role as constructive and commendable.

On Pakistan–India relations, he reiterated that the central unresolved issue remained the right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people and stressed that sustained US engagement was essential for achieving lasting peace and stability in the region.

Discussing the internal security situation, the ambassador said that links to terrorist activities inside Pakistan traced back to Afghanistan. He shared that terrorist incidents increased by 40 percent in 2024 and rose by another 25 percent in 2025. He also expressed concern over the misuse of advanced weaponry left behind after the withdrawal from Afghanistan, stating that it continued to undermine Pakistan’s security.

The meeting concluded with both sides agreeing to establish an institutionalised and structured dialogue mechanism at the earliest to address issues of mutual interest and further strengthen bilateral cooperation.