ISLAMABAD  -   Prime Minister Imran Khan will seek US President Donald Trump’s help to resolve the longstanding Kashmir issue with India when he meets the American leader this month in Washington, officials said on Sunday.

Senior officials at the foreign ministry told The Nation that the agenda was being worked out for the July 22 meeting at the White House.

“The PM will definitely take up the Kashmir issue with the US President and seek his help for the resolution of the dispute with India,” said one official.

Another official said that Pakistan will brief the US about Islamabad’s efforts for regional peace. “The ongoing support to the US talks with the Afghan Taliban will be discussed. Pakistan is ready to go further for Afghan peace and stability,” he said. The official said Pakistan had also been urging talks with India and Imran Khan will provide details of Pakistan’s efforts so far to President Trump.

Even yesterday, an eight-member Indian delegation visited Pakistan via the Wagah Border for talks on the Kartarpur corridor. The delegation was being headed by the joint secretary of external affairs. Pakistan’s 20-member delegation was headed by Dr Mohammed Faisal, the Foreign Office spokesperson and its director-general of South Asia.

The US is also very happy with Pakistan’s role for peace in Afghanistan and success of talks with the Afghan Taliban.

The trust level between Pakistan and the US is improving due to the team efforts on Taliban talks but Washington was still reluctant to see Pakistan as a ‘trusted friend.’

Earlier, President Trump wrote a letter to Prime Minister Imran Khan seeking Islamabad’s support in securing a “negotiated settlement” to the war in Afghanistan.

The Pak-US ties had soured in recent years with US officials repeatedly accusing Islamabad of ignoring or even collaborating with groups like the Afghan Taliban, which attack Afghanistan from alleged safe havens along the border between the two countries.

The troubled relationship hit another snag after US President Donald Trump declared he had cancelled assistance worth hundreds of millions of dollars because Islamabad does not do ‘a damn thing’ for the US. Former secretary of state Rex Tillerson had placed Pakistan on a special watch list to warn them of their likelihood of being placed on the list of Countries of Particular Concern. Foreign Office spokesperson Dr Mohammed Faisal said Pakistan will contribute towards building a broad based, long term and enduring partnership between the two countries on the basis of mutual interest and mutual benefit.

PM Khan, he said, will highlight Pakistan’s policy of peaceful neighbourhood aimed at resolving disputes through dialogue and promoting the vision of peace, progress and prosperity in South Asia and beyond.