ISLAMABAD: Senate Chairman Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has said Pakistan`s relations with the United States constituted an important element of its foreign policy and that the two countries have a longstanding and broad-based relationship.

He said Pakistan had a desire to deepen and broaden this relationship and continue working closely with the US to promote regional and international peace and stability.

He expressed these views in a meeting with the US embassy`s minister counsellor for political affairs. They exchanged views on matters of bilateral significance.

The Senate chairman extended congratulation to President Donald Trump on his victory in the elections and said Pakistan was desirous of working closely with the new administration to foster peaceful and secure future that respects the sovereignty and aspirations of all nations.

`Our bilateral relationship is on the upward trajectory and it is important to maintain the cur-rent positive momentum,` Mr Gilani said. He also expressed the desire to working with US on diverse areas including climate change, mitigation and adaptation , energy transition , water management, climate smart agriculture biodiversity and waste management.

The Senate chairman said US investment in different sectors would be more productive for Pakistani economy and help in sustainable economic development. He, however, underscored the need tofurtherincrease the trade volume between the two countries. He also encouraged US companies to explore new areasforinvestmentinPakistan.

`We are desirous of diversifying our bilateral trade relationship with the US,` he said.

Mr Gilani also acknowledged the importance of high-level visit and recalled that during his tenure as prime minister from 2008 to 2012, fruitful discussions had taken place. There is a need to further expedite parliamentary and high-level exchanges and promote people to people contacts, he added.

He recalled the signing ceremony of an event in which Punjab and California were declared sister states, which hewitnessed. He stressed Pakistan`s role in regional peace including efforts to facilitate stability in Afghanistan and support ongoing dialogue for peace and security in South Asia. Highlighting the importance of regional peace, the Senate chairman observed that peace in the region would have a lasting impact on global peace and stability.

`We are focusing on peaceful development and doing our best to avoid getting into a conflict or bloc politics. Our focus is on geoeconomics rather than geopolitics.

He said Pakistan wanted to have better and constructive relations with all regional countries despite bilateral challenges that afflict the region. He lauded Pakistani diaspora`s role and said that they were playing a crucial role in bridging the relationship between the two countries and people-to-people contacts were a significant aspect of this relationship.

The US political counsellor mentioned that this was his second term in Pakistan and recalled his visit to Multan along with former Ambassador Olson, adding they also visited the shrine of Musa Pak.