QUETTA: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Monday said Pakistan-United States relations were multi-dimensional and important and that the country's national interest would determine ties between the two countries.

“We are trying to have an open, transparent, and mutually beneficial relationship with the US based on our national interest,” Gilani said in his address here at the Command and Staff College.

Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kiyani and Commandant Staff College Major General Sohail Ahmed Khan were also present on the occasion.

Prime Minister Gilani said a thriving, prosperous, transparent, and peaceful Afghanistan was in the interest of Pakistan.

“We have improved our relations with all our neighbors including Afghanistan, India and Iran, the prime minister said, adding “we want to play our role in the stability and peace in Afghanistan.”

Gilani said Pakistan was paying special attention in making its neighborhood peaceful, stable, and prosperous.

He, however, clarified that Pakistan had an important role to play in the region and it should be taken on board in the decision-making process regarding the future of Afghanistan.

He said Pakistan was facing many challenges including terrorism and security which were the country's most important issues.

“The ongoing spate of terror has caused billions of dollars in losses to Pakistan,” he said and mentioned that over 30,000 soldiers and law enforcement personnel laid down their lives besides 5,000 civilians in the “fight against global and regional terrorism”.

“I have a firm belief that these sacrifices will lead us to a future where our children and the generations to follow will lead a peaceful and productive life.”

He said economic growth, national security and democratic pluralism were the government's top priority.

Referring to the rise in petroleum products' prices in the country, he said economic development and national stability were correlative and pointed that prices of petroleum products' like other countries had also affected Pakistan.

Prime Minister Gilani said the country had faced long periods of non-democratic governments and said a look at the balance sheet of political history shows that only democratically-elected governments had provided constitutional, political, economic, and security solutions that have stood the test of time.

He said nations prospered under democracies and thrived in the strength of their democratic institutions.

“Parliament, executive, and judiciary, all have to work well within their given domains for the people's will,” he said.

He mentioned the floods of 2010, that caused a loss of around US 10 billion dollars to the economy, but said that despite all difficulties economic indicators have shown improvement since his government took office.

Prime Minister Gilani said the national GDP witnessed growth while the Karachi Stock Exchange also increased to 13 billion dollars.

The prime minister said the government spent rupees three billion for rescue and rehabilitation of rain and flood victims in Sindh and Balochistan and said inflation rate had been reduced to a single digit.