Thaindian News

Washington, April 28(ANI): Dismissing reports of tattered ties between the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani, has said that the two spy agencies have been “the best of partners”.

Haqqani said that a spate of negative reports and commentaries on the state of Pakistan-US relations are not factual.

“The (Pakistan-US) relationship is far more robust than the news reporting makes it out,” APP quoted Haqqani, as telling MSNBC in a live interview.

“There are people who don’t want to believe that ISI is a partner of the CIA,” he remarked.

“Actually, contrary to public perception, CIA and ISI are the best of partners,” he added.

Haqqani also said that Pakistan and the US, who have occasional differences of opinion as allies and partners, have been working to bridge the gap, and cited Pakistan Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir’s visit to Washington last week in this regard.

“We had intense meetings,” he said, adding that the US Special Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan, Marc Grossman, is headed to Islamabad.

“The CIA and ISI have already worked out an arrangement, whereby they will be able to have measures that will enable each other to trust each other on certain specifics. We have overcome the rough patch,” said Haqqani.

“The important thing is that Pakistan needs the United States and the United States needs Pakistan. We are allies, we are partners and we will work together,” he added. (ANI)