President Obama:
It's a great pleasure
to welcome Prime Minister Sharif
to the Oval Office.
He was reminding me that the
last time he visited here
was quite some time ago, and
we're glad to have him back
after a historic election
that took place in Pakistan.
To see a peaceful transition
from one democratically elected
government to another was an
enormous milestone for Pakistan
and a testimony to the Pakistani
people's desire for democracy.
And so we are very glad to be
able to partner with the people
of Pakistan and the Pakistani
government on a whole range
of issues that are
of common interest
and common concern to us.
We had an excellent conversation
on a wide range of issues.
And at the outset, I emphasized
that the United States
considers Pakistan to be a very
important strategic partner.
We believe that if Pakistan
is secure and peaceful
and prosperous, that's not
only good for Pakistan,
it's good for the region
and it's good for the world.
And we want to do everything
that we can to help
the Prime Minister as he
moves forward on a bold agenda
to achieve that vision.
We spent a lot of time
talking about the economy.
I know that the Prime Minister
is very deeply concerned about
making sure that the energy
sector inside of Pakistan is
functioning efficiently and that
industry and jobs and greater
opportunity exists for all
of the people of Pakistan
and all regions of Pakistan.
And we discussed how the
United States could potentially
be helpful on energy projects,
on infrastructure projects.
I applauded the Prime Minister
for some of the reform steps
that he's already taken.
Not all of them
are easy, but they promise
to put Pakistan's
finances and economy
on a more stable footing.
And the Prime Minister
emphasized how trade
can be a powerful engine
for growth as well.
And we're going to be exploring
ways that we can continue
to deepen trade between
our two countries.
We talked about security and the
concerns that both of us have
about senseless violence,
terrorism and extremism.
And we agreed that we need to
continue to find constructive
ways to partner together --
ways that respect Pakistan's
sovereignty, that respect the
concerns of both countries.
And I'm optimistic that we
can continue to make important
strides in moving forward
because both the Pakistani
people and the American people
have suffered terribly
from terrorism in the past.
More Pakistani civilians
have been killed, obviously,
from some of these terrorist
attacks than anybody,
and so I know that the Prime
Minister is very much committed
to trying to reduce these
incidents of terrorism inside of
Pakistan's borders, and the
degree to which these activities
may be exported to
other countries.
It's a challenge.
It's not easy.
And we are committed to working
together and making sure that
rather than
this being a source of tension
between our two countries,
that it can be a source
of strength for us,
working together
in a constructive
and a respectful way.
We had an opportunity
to discuss Afghanistan.
Obviously, Pakistan is deeply
interested in how Afghanistan
transitions as the United States
and other coalition forces
end their combat role next year.
Afghanistan is fully responsible
for its own security,
and I pledged to fully brief
the Prime Minister and his
government as we make progress
in not only Afghan elections,
but also a long-term strategy
for stability in the region.
And the Prime Minister and
I both agreed that
it is in America and Pakistan's
interests for Afghanistan
to be stable and secure, its
sovereignty respected.
The Prime Minister has had very
good meetings with President
Karzai, and I know that
President Karzai very much
appreciated many
of the gestures
that Prime Minister
Sharif has made.
And I'm confident
that, working together,
we can achieve a goal
that is good for Afghanistan
but also helps to protect
Pakistan over the long term.
And we had an opportunity
to discuss India,
and the Prime Minister
had the opportunity to meet
with Indian Prime Minister
Singh in New York.
I think he is taking a very wise
path in exploring how decades
of tension between India and
Pakistan can be reduced,
because, as he points out,
billions of dollars have been
spent on an arms race in
response to these tensions and
those resources could be much
more profitably invested in
education, social welfare
programs on both sides of the
border between
India and Pakistan,
and would be good for
the entire subcontinent,
and good for the world.
And so I very much appreciate
all of the work that Prime
Minister Sharif
has already done.
He has great challenges
ahead of him,
but he is somebody
who I think understands
where Pakistan needs to go.
And we want to be fully
supportive of continued success
and continued democracy
inside of Pakistan.
And I shared with him that
I had the opportunity,
back in 1980 when
I was a very young man,
to visit Pakistan because
I had two Pakistani roommates
in college whose mothers taught
me how to cook daal and keema,
and other very good
Pakistani food.
And it was a
wonderful trip for me,
and created a great
appreciation and a great love
for the Pakistani people.
I know that Pakistani Americans
here in the United States
are enormous
contributors to the growth
and development
of the United States,
and so we have these strong 
people-to-people connections.
And my hope is, is that despite
what inevitably will be some
tensions between our two
countries and occasional
misunderstandings between
our two countries,
that the fundamental
goodwill that is shared
between the Pakistani
people and the American people,
that that will be reflected in
our governments' relationships
and that we will
continue to make progress
in the coming years.
So, Mr. Prime Minister, welcome.
And thank you for
an excellent conversation
and an excellent visit.
Prime Minister Sharif:
Thank you very much.
Thank you, Mr. President, for
your gracious invitation and the
warm welcome accorded to me
and members of my delegation.
Thank you for your support
through democracy and good
wishes for the
people of Pakistan.
Ladies and gentlemen
of the press,
I just had a most cordial and
comprehensive exchange of views
with President Obama on matters
of bilateral interest and issues
of regional concern.
I have conveyed to the President
the warm and cordial greetings
of the people of Pakistan for
the friendly people
of the United States of America.
Over the past 65 years, our two
nations have traveled together
as friends and allies in defense
of freedom and the pursuit
of international
peace and security.
Besides shared history, our two
countries are bound by a common
commitment to the cherished
values of democracy.
In today's meeting
with the President,
I apprised him of my
government's domestic
and foreign policy strategies.
We also discussed a common
vision to build a robust
bilateral cooperation.
A broad-based, stable, and
enduring partnership founded on
the principles of mutual
respect and mutual interest
serve us best.
At the domestic level, my
government is focused on four
key areas, and I discuss
this with Mr. President --
that is economy,
energy, education
and combating extremism.
We both agreed that progress
in these core areas
is indispensable for
creating new opportunities
and building a hopeful
future for our next generation.
Energy security is another
high priority for my government.
I have conveyed our deep
appreciation to President Obama
for the United States'
support in this sector.
Forging a strong, great economic
and investment partnership
with the United States is
of paramount importance for us.
In this regard, we have
discussed a number of ideas
and look forward to further
discussions between our experts
in the coming weeks and months.
Pakistan and the United
States have a strong ongoing
counterterrorism cooperation.
We have agreed to further
strengthen this cooperation.
I also brought up the issue
of drones in our meeting,
emphasizing the need for
an end to such strikes.
On the regional plane, I advised
President Obama of my efforts
to create a peaceful
and prosperous neighborhood.
In particular, I highlighted
our initiatives with regard
to Afghanistan and Yemen.
As regards Afghanistan,
let there be no doubt about our
commitment for a peaceful
and stable Afghanistan.
This result remains unbending.
As in the past, we will continue
to engage the United States
of America in building a united,
peaceful and stable Afghanistan.
I told President Obama about my
sincere commitment to build
a cordial and cooperative
relationship with India,
and our efforts
to peacefully resolve
all our outstanding issues, 
including Kashmir.
Terrorism constitutes
a common threat.
It is as much a concern
to us as it is for India.
We need to allay our respective
concerns through serious
and sincere efforts without
indulging into any blame game.
I also assured the President
that as a responsible nuclear
state, Pakistan will continue
to act with maximum restraint
and work toward strengthening
strategic stability
in South Asia.
Mr. President, I admire your
statesmanship, your wisdom,
and your commitment to high
values of peace and stability
around the world.
I thank you once again, and look
forward to welcoming you
and Mr. Obama --
and Mrs. Obama in Pakistan.
And keema and daal
is waiting for you.
[laughter]
President Obama:
Thank you very much.
