US President Donald Trump has welcomed the upcoming visit of Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and a senior military leader to the White House, describing both as “great leaders.”
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said, “We have a great leader coming, the Prime Minister of Pakistan and the Field Marshal. Field Marshal is a very great guy, and so is the Prime Minister, both, and they’re coming, and they may be in this room right now.”
According to the White House schedule, Trump will hold a closed-door meeting with Sharif, who is visiting Washington after attending the 80th United Nations General Assembly in New York.
Sharif had earlier engaged in an informal exchange with Trump on September 23, following the US President’s meeting with leaders of eight Islamic-Arab countries, including Pakistan. Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar was also present during that discussion.
Alongside his comments on Pakistan, Trump strongly criticised Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin’s leadership.
“I’m very dissatisfied with what Russia is doing and what President Putin is doing. He’s killing people for no reason whatsoever,” Trump said, adding that Russia’s economy was deteriorating while its military was struggling to gain ground.
He further stated, “They’re bombing the hell out of everything, and they’re picking up very little territory, if any. In fact, they’re losing some.”
Trump argued that the prolonged conflict had damaged Russia’s global reputation, remarking, “This war should have been over. If this were our war, we would have had it over in one, and they’re getting into their 4th year. So now I’m very disappointed in President Putin.”
