LAHORE:
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday met Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President and former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at Jati Umra where key issues on parties and governance were discussed.
Deputy Prime Minister and External Affairs Minister Ishaq Dar and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz were also present.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister briefed Nawaz about his recent visit to Malaysia and conveyed a goodwill message from Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
He said bilateral relations between Pakistan and Malaysia, particularly in the economic sphere, were “reaching new heights”.
Shehbaz also briefed the party leader about his upcoming visit to Egypt and discussed the country’s internal and regional security situation, including border tensions with Afghanistan.
While such interactions between the two Sharifs have become a regular weekly affair, Sunday’s meeting came amid a politically tense environment as the PML-N-led federal government faces multiple internal and external challenges.
Among them, the upcoming elections for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister’s post have emerged as a major political test for the ruling party.
According to sources, the establishment is interested in preventing PTI founder Sohail Afridi’s candidate from winning the province’s top spot, a task supposedly entrusted to the PML-N leadership.
In its bid to raise the necessary numbers, the party is said to be reaching out to PTI legislators and, if necessary, is even willing to consider supporting JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman for the post.
Political maneuvering aside, the government continues to grapple with an uptick in terrorism and border skirmishes with Afghanistan.
