Hagel to visit Pakistan tomorrow

Afghanistan's stalled peace process and the strained ties between the US and Pakistan would be high on the agenda during a visit by Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel to Islamabad tomorrow.
Hagel, who has been in Afghanistan since Saturday, will meet Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and other top leadership in the first trip by a US defence secretary to Pakistan in nearly four years.
"Secretary Hagel met with Prime Minister Sharif on his visit to Washington earlier this year and looks forward to continuing candid and productive conversations about our important security partnership and how to address common threats," Pentagon spokesman Carl Woog said today.

"Coming on the heels of his trip to Kabul, Secretary Hagel also looks forward to discussing with Prime Minister Sharif and other senior Pakistani officials the United States and Pakistan's common interest in a stable Afghanistan," he said.
Officials said the two sides would also discuss relations between the two countries, which have been troubled over US drone strikes targeting suspected militants in Pakistan's tribal belt.