Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, has arrived in Washington to discuss trade, economic cooperation and other matters, the Pakistani foreign ministry said on Friday.
Pakistan and the United States (US) have been engaged in talks after Washington announced a 29 percent “reciprocal tariff” on Pakistani exports in April. Islamabad said the move, paused in June for a 90-day period, may undercut its fragile, export-led recovery.
The US is Pakistan’s top export destination, with shipments totaling $5.44 billion in fiscal year 2023-2024, according to official data. From July 2024 to February 2025, exports rose 10 percent from a year earlier.
Deputy PM Dar, who was received by Pakistan’s Ambassador Rizwan Saeed Sheikh upon arrival in Washington, is scheduled to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday, according to the Pakistani foreign ministry.
“The meeting will discuss important facets of Pakistan-US relations exploring ways and means to strengthen bilateral ties, with a particular focus on promoting trade, investment and economic cooperation,” the Pakistani foreign ministry said.
“The Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister is also scheduled to speak at the US think tank, The Atlantic Council, sharing Pakistan’s perspective on regional and global issues as well as the future of Pakistan-US relations.”
Nearly 90 percent of Pakistan’s exports to the US are textiles, a sector that is most vulnerable to the duties. The South Asian country is also seeking to diversify its trade destinations and export base to mitigate risks related to its international trade as it recovers from a macroeconomic crisis under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) program.
Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said last week that Islamabad and Washington are exploring a shift in their economic engagement from a trade-focused relationship to one anchored in long-term investment, following his meeting with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington.
“One thing we discussed was that we have to move beyond the immediate trade imperative for it to be brought into the next level and bring in a real step change,” Aurangzeb said.
“So, the investment imperative will come forward, and areas have already been identified in terms of minerals and mining, in terms of AI [artificial intelligence], in terms of digital infrastructure [and] crypto,” he continued. “We feel that this will be a real game changer, God willing, in terms of the relationship and the economic relationship between Pakistan and the United States.”
The Pakistani finance chief said both sides were committed to resolving outstanding trade issues to move “toward the finishing line” and begin investment-related discussions “very quickly.”
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