Pak humiliated by failed efforts to get phone call from Biden

New Delhi, Dec 18:  Pakistans unsuccessful efforts to convince the Americans for a phone call from US President Joe Biden have humiliated the country at the international level, Friday Times reported.

After Biden was sworn-in in January this year, no contact was established between him and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, as is the diplomatic tradition.

Pakistani officials made attempts at the diplomatic level to establish this contact, but the efforts remained futile. The US reportedly was conveyed the message that Imran Khan was ready to initiate the phone call, but American officials still remained unmoved, the report said.

The Pakistan government and its establishments were told by the country's Foreign Office that Pakistan was in touch with US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, Secretary of Defence, Lloyd Austin, Deputy Secretary of State, Wendy Sherman, intelligence authorities and other US officials, which meant Biden's reluctance to call Imran Khan did not make much of a difference.

The Foreign Office was of the opinion that the matter of phone call should be dropped, but this view was not taken into consideration and Pakistan's efforts to establish contact between Biden and Imran Khan continued, the report said.

Sources at the Pakistan Foreign Office said that the last attempt it made to get Biden to talk to Imran Khan was in March this year. All efforts thereafter made in this regard were the establishment's initiative, the report said.

Last week, a four-member delegation of the US Congress had met Imran Khan. The Pakistan Foreign Office had strongly advised the Prime Minister not to mention the phone call issue during the meeting.

However, sources said that efforts towards securing a phone call from the US President continue despite the Foreign Office's position against it, the report said.