WASHINGTON: The two-day US-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue, which resumes in Islamabad early next week, will focus on two recent developments: a marked improvement in Pakistan’s relations with Afghanistan and a rapid increase in tensions with India.

Talking to Dawn, Ambassador Jalil Abbas Jilani highlighted one of the two developments — improvement in relations with Afghanistan.

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“Yes, there has been a steady progress in relations with Afghanistan since the election of a new government in Kabul,” he said. He acknowledged that recent clashes on India-Pakistan border were “a cause of concern” in both Washington and Islamabad.

But he pointed out that the Strategic Dialogue was a forum for reviewing relations between Pakistan and the United States “so all discussions will have a bilateral context”.

This would be the second ministerial-level meeting since the dialogue resumed in 2013. Three sessions were held in quick succession in 2010 but the dialogue was suspended after the May 2011 US operation in Abbottabad.