• Rubio hails Islamabad’s backing for Gaza plan, role in peace board
• Offers cooperation on critical minerals
• Premier meets regional leaders, IDFC chief
WASHINGTON: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrapped up a two-day visit to Washington on Friday, securing a US pledge to cooperate on critical minerals and energy after aligning his country with a US President Donald Trump-led Gaza peace initiative and praising his role in defusing a regional crisis last year.
PM Shehbaz met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday to discuss shifting the bilateral relationship toward economic investment while maintaining a partnership in counterterrorism, according to a State Department statement.
In their meeting, Rubio thanked Pakistan for supporting Trump’s Gaza peace plan and for its role as a founding member of the “Board of Peace”, which held its inaugural session on Thursday.
The State Department said Rubio also offered condolences for recent terror attacks in Pakistan and “reaffirmed the importance of continued partnership in counterterrorism”.
The ‘meaningful’ discussions covered Pakistan’s recent participation in the Critical Minerals Ministerial in Washington, with the US welcoming Islamabad’s engagement and discussing commercial opportunities for American companies in the country’s energy and mineral resources.
According to the Press Information Department of Pakistan, both sides reaffirmed the importance of Pakistan-US strategic ties and expressed satisfaction with the partnership’s progress under President Trump.
They agreed to boost trade, expand economic cooperation and strengthen counterterrorism efforts, while emphasising the need for continued high-level engagement to advance shared goals.
‘A saviour of South Asia’
PM Shehbaz also credited Trump with de-escalating a four-day military crisis between Pakistan and India in May. He called the president “a man of peace” and “a saviour of South Asia”, whose intervention had “potentially averted the loss of tens of millions of people”.
Speaking at the summit, Trump recounted his actions during that conflict, saying he warned both countries that the US would halt trade negotiations and could impose steep tariffs.
“I called them and said I am not doing trade deals with you two guys if you don’t settle this up,” Trump said, adding that the economic threat helped achieve a de-escalation.
A notable moment at the summit came when Trump devoted nearly four minutes of his address to praising Pakistan’s civilian and military leadership for their “constructive and responsible role for regional peace and stability”, referencing his meeting with PM Shehbaz and the Chief of Defence Forces, Field Marshal Asim Munir.
The prime minister, in turn, lauded what he called Trump’s “bold diplomacy” and “dynamic leadership” in resolving international crises and bringing calm to global hotspots.
Meeting with regional leaders
According to Prime Minister’s Office, PM Shehbaz also held informal meetings with several leaders in Washington for the Board of Peace session, including the king of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, and the presidents of Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Indonesia.
It described Pakistan’s participation in the board as part of its broader effort to support peace in Gaza, reconstruction initiatives and “global peace”.
Separately, APP reported that PM Shehbaz met the chief executive of the US International Development Finance Corporation (IDFC), Benjamin Black, on Friday. The premier praised the portfolio of more than $1bn and urged closer business-to-business engagement, while Black outlined the agency’s project pipeline and signalled interest in expanding the IDFC footprint in Pakistan.
Officials played down expectations of major agreements, suggesting the visit was aimed more at setting a direction than producing headline deals.
Published in Dawn, February 21st, 2026
