The White House has officially denied recent media speculation suggesting that Donald Trump is planning a visit to Pakistan in September, putting an end to a flurry of conflicting reports circulating across South Asian media outlets.
On Thursday, several Pakistani news channels claimed that Trump would travel to Islamabad, followed by a stop in India, later this year. The reports suggested that the trip might align with regional geopolitical developments, including the upcoming Quad summit in India. However, the channels quickly backtracked and withdrew their reports — after it became clear that no such plan was confirmed.
A White House official addressed the swirling speculation directly, stating:
“A trip to Pakistan has not been scheduled at this time.”
The message was echoed in Islamabad, where the Foreign Office Spokesperson, Shafqat Ali Khan, told Dawn.com:
“We have no information about this matter.”
Similarly, a U.S. embassy spokesperson in Islamabad remained noncommittal, stating to Reuters:
“We have nothing to announce,” while adding that the White House would be the appropriate source for any official schedule confirmation.
The last time a sitting U.S. president visited Pakistan was in 2006, when George W. Bush made a brief but diplomatically significant stop in Islamabad. Since then, U.S.-Pakistan relations have seen moments of tension and thaw, particularly during the Trump administration. However, ties warmed notably in recent months, especially after Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir’s visit to the White House, which marked an unprecedented engagement.
Adding to the confusion, Trump is already scheduled to be in Britain from September 17 to 19 for a state visit hosted by King Charles, as announced by Buckingham Palace earlier this week — making a September visit to Pakistan highly unlikely, if not logistically impossible.
Meanwhile, all eyes remain on the upcoming Quad Summit, to be hosted by India, where regional security, counterbalancing China’s influence, and U.S.-India cooperation are expected to be front and center. The U.S., India, Australia, and Japan make up the Quad alliance, an increasingly strategic bloc in the Indo-Pacific.
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