The United States will impose “reciprocal restrictions” on Pakistani officials by May 1, Dawn reported on Wednesday.
In an interview with the Voice of America’s Uzbek service, the US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas Shannon said travel restrictions had been imposed on American diplomats too, but downplayed these developments by saying they were common in diplomacy.
“We have had some very fruitful conversations with the government of Pakistan about events inside of Afghanistan,” Shannon told Voice of America. “It is my hope that we are going to be able to build off those in a way that helps this broader reconciliation process. Typically, these kinds of restrictions are reciprocal in nature, so I will just leave it at that.”
Washington notified Islamabad that Pakistani diplomats would have to seek permission to travel beyond 40 kilometres of the cities they were posted in, Dawn reported.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!