Pakistan foreign minister to visit UK amid warming ties

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will visit the United Kingdom from Aug. 17 to 19, the Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.

In London, Dar, who also serves as the country's deputy prime minister, will hold meetings with Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and Hamish Falconer, parliamentary under-secretary of state for Pakistan.

In addition, he will attend a breakfast meeting with Commonwealth Secretary-General Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey.

Dar will also inaugurate a Punjab Land Record Authority’s project, piloted at the Pakistan High Commission, London. The initiative aims to assist members of the diaspora in resolving land documentation issues in Pakistan remotely.

He will engage with British parliamentarians, Kashmiri leaders, and representatives of the British-Pakistani community.

The visit comes under a backdrop of warming ties with the UK lifting a 5-year ban on Pakistani airlines. Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) is preparing to resume direct flights, beginning with Islamabad–Manchester routes.

The UK has played an active diplomatic role in easing recent tensions between India and Pakistan, which resulted in a four-day conflict in May.

This June, Foreign Secretary David Lammy became the first top British diplomat to visit Pakistan since 2021, underscoring London’s push to turn the fragile ceasefire into durable peace.

During meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and senior officials, Lammy welcomed the cessation of hostilities, praised the steps taken by both countries, and acknowledged the distress caused to millions of British citizens with Pakistani and Indian heritage.