Under the proposed plan, U.S. investors would build and operate a terminal in the coastal town of Pasni to access Pakistan’s critical minerals. Pasni, located in Gwadar District of Balochistan, is a key port city near the borders of Afghanistan and Iran, making it strategically significant for trade and connectivity.
The initiative follows a meeting held at the White House in September, where Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Asim Munir met U.S. President Donald Trump. During the meeting, Sharif invited American companies to invest in Pakistan’s agriculture, technology, mining, and energy sectors, signaling Islamabad’s push to strengthen economic engagement with Washington.
The proposal was shared with certain U.S. officials and was brought to the attention of Asim Munir prior to his meeting with President Trump. The plan does not involve any use of the port as a U.S. military base. Instead, the focus is on attracting development-oriented investment and linking the port to the mineral-rich western provinces through a modern railway network.
Reuters has not independently verified the report. The U.S. State Department, White House, and Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and the Pakistani military could not be reached.
