ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office clarified on Sunday that no “deal” is being discussed between Pakistan and the United States.

According to earlier media reports, US has been weighing options to sign a civil nuclear deal with Pakistan.

"US has not made any demand from Pakistan. In any case, history is a testimony to the fact that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif accepts no demand from any state," FO Spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said in a late night statement.

The FO spokesman said “the premier firmly believes in policies directed at preserving, protecting and promoting Pakistan’s national interests”.

Khalilullah was responding to a question regarding certain speculative comments and articles appearing in the media about a "civil nuclear deal" between Pakistan and US during the prime minister’s forthcoming visit to Washington.

Know more: Pakistan to maintain full spectrum nuclear deterrence, FO asserts

“Many of them appear to be an attempt to confuse the audience and generate controversy, where there is none, on issues of national importance,” he added.

The FO spokesman reiterated that the prime minister will reach Washington on October 20 at the invitation of US President Barrack Obama, on an official visit.

The premier’s visit to the United States is aimed at further enhancing and strengthening relations between the two countries, he concluded.

Earlier, the US government spokesperson had told Dawn the United States “urges all nuclear-capable states, including Pakistan, to exercise restraint” regarding nuclear weapons and missile capabilities.

Nawaz departs for US

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif left on a four-day official visit to US on Sunday night.

In his departure statement, the premier said that Pakistan is a responsible sovereign nuclear State.

“Its strategic assets are secured under a foolproof arrangement and Pakistan's nuclear status is a deterrence against any external aggression,” Nawaz asserted.

He also expressed satisfaction over Pak-US bilateral relations and said they are satisfactorily advancing on an upward trajectory.

"We want to expand and augment the scope of US-Pakistan strategic dialogue framework in a multifaceted manner," Nawaz said.

The premier said “being a sovereign country having strong democratic dispensation, Pakistan has rendered unmatched sacrifice in war on terror as a front-line State”.

“Even now, Zarb-i-Azb's success is a manifestation of Pakistan's unwavering commitment to root out terrorism and extremism from the country.”

We are fighting this war to not only ensure peace and prosperity of our country alone but also to make South Asia, and the region beyond, a hub of peace and development, Nawaz remarked.

Pakistan honours the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all the states in terms of bilateral and multilateral relations as equal sovereign partners, he concluded.