Islamabad – The US President Donald Trump administration has officially approached Pakistan with some ambitious offers of enhancing financial and industrial relationships.
According to the American officials, there was a keen interest in the new US-Pakistan economic cooperation model encompassing the sale of locomotives and the exploration of the abundant mineral resources of Pakistan during the Washington meetings.
The dialogue between the Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and the US top advisers shows an interest and willingness to open new horizons of trade and the sharing of technology between the two countries.
The finance minister held meetings with US administration on the sidelines of the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Modernizing Railways and Digital Access
The modernization of Pakistan Railways was one of the main areas of discussion. The US has asked Pakistan to put into consideration American-manufactured locomotives for its next fleet upgrades.
As Pakistan is now involved in the repair of its existing diesel engines, given tight budgetary constraints, the possibility of US-Pakistan economic cooperation in the transport sector is one of the priorities.
Besides the tracks, the US is also pushing the introduction of high-speed internet services provided by Starlink. The program would provide credible digital connectivity to the rural and remote Pakistani communities in a bid to bridge the digital divide.
Exploring Critical Minerals and AI
Another significant pillar of the proposed partnership is the extraction of the critical minerals. The US has been providing to cooperating in assessment studies to determine the mineral wealth of Pakistan and has signed an agreement to extract at a quicker pace.
US officials reported that a $135 billion international fund has been established to finance such projects, and much of the loan has already been sanctioned to fund the Reko Diq mining project in the province of Balochistan.
This US-Pakistan economic cooperation is also future-oriented in terms of technology, where Artificial Intelligence (AI) is mentioned in the category of strategic priorities.
Senior US energy officials are already planning to visit Pakistan to talk about the way AI can reshape the industrial landscape.
Financial Reforms and Global Partnerships
The discussion also included the issue of eliminating the tax on digital services, a step that has been welcomed by the US since it has put the American companies on an even footing.
Digital finance debates implied shifting to a private-sector and framework to enhance cross-border payments.
