Pakistan is “just days” away from finalizing a trade deal with the United States, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said after a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. US trade deal
“I think we are very close to finalizing [a deal] with the US,” Dar told an audience at Washington’s Atlantic Council think tank.
Earlier, Rubio noted in a statement that the two diplomats discussed trade and collaboration in Pakistan’s key mineral sector.
“Our teams have been here in Washington… a committee has been tasked by the Prime Minister to fine-tune now. It’s not going to be months, not even weeks—just days,” Dar added.
Dar said the agreement would include cooperation in the mineral field.
Pakistan is estimated to have large reserves of minerals valued worth $6 trillion. Covering a massive area of 600,000 square kilometers Pakistan has 92 identified minerals, including coal, salt, copper, and gold.
A U.S. delegation recently visited Islamabad and showed a keen interest in investment in the mineral sector development.
According to Dar, Pakistan’s natural resources are valued at $6–8 trillion, and American investors can benefit from great investment opportunities.
The two diplomats discussed ways to expand the bilateral ties which have seen a marked improvement in recent months.
The two sides are focusing on important facets of Pak-US relations and exploring ways “strengthen bilateral ties, with a particular focus on promoting trade, investment and economic cooperation,” according to Pakistani officials.
“Dar’s visit to New York and Washington exemplifies Pakistan’s growing role and importance in the multilateral arena as well as its expanding multifaceted relations with the US,” Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said.
In Washington, Pakistan is being seen as a major counterterrorism partner as well as an attractive destination for investment in minerals.
Secretary Rubio consulted Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif a few times during the Iran-Israeli conflict in June as Washington sought Pakistan’s opinion on the precarious conflict on its border.
The U.S. and Pakistani officials held several rounds of negotiations over the past few weeks with the aim to reach a trade deal before President Donald Trump’s August 1 deadline, when reciprocal tariffs on imports from trading partners are slated to apply.
On Friday, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb met with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and United States Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer as part of another round of trade negotiations to avoid a 29 per cent tariff.
US-Pakistan relations saw a major boost when Trump hosted Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir at the White House last month in an unprecedented meeting.
Islamabad has also nominated President Trump for 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for his mediating the deadly India-Pakistan conflict in May.
Besides, Washington has hailed Pakistan as a “phenomenal” counterterrorism partner.
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Iftikhar Ali is a veteran Pakistani journalist, former president of UN Correspondents Association, and a recipient of the Pride of Performance civil award
