Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Tuesday told United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson that Islamabad had “produced results” in the fight against terrorism, AP reported. He also said he looked forward to building a “tremendous relationship” with the US.

“We are committed in the war against terror,” Abbasi said. “The US can rest assured that we are strategic partners in the war against terror, and that today, Pakistan is fighting the largest war in the world against terror.”

Tillerson said Pakistan needs to “take a clear-eyed view” of “the situation that they are confronted with, in terms of the number of terrorist organisations that find safe haven” in its territory. “So we want to work closely with Pakistan to create a more stable and secure Pakistan, as well,” he said, a day after he had said that Islamabad’s cooperation on the fight against terror was key to a good relationship with the US.

The US secretary of state is currently on a visit to South Asia and will visit India next. The country’s relationship with Pakistan has been under the spotlight in recent weeks, with differing stands on different occasions – on October 14, US President Donald Trump said Washington was beginning to build a better relationship with Pakistan and its leaders, a day after Pakistan rescued an American-Canadian family from the Haqqani network.

This was a departure from a strong view Trump took in August, when he accused Islamabad of protecting terrorists and said Washington would “no longer be silent about Pakistan’s safe havens for terrorist organisations”. Earlier in October, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis also pointed out that Pakistan must shut its safe havens for terrorists.