Shehbaz Sharif to meet Trump on UNGA sidelines

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is set to meet US President Donald Trump on September 23 during the UN General Assembly session, according to a media report. The two leaders will host a reception dinner at the Lotte New York Palace Hotel, providing an opportunity for Sharif to interact with other world leaders. This meeting comes after several previous interactions, including the inaugural Board of Peace meeting in Washington in February, a White House meeting in September 2025, and a meeting at the Sharm el-Sheikh Peace Summit in Egypt last October.

Sharif is scheduled to address the UN General Assembly on September 25, where he is expected to raise concerns over India's suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty in April 2025. The treaty, established in 1960 and overseen by the World Bank, governs the distribution of the waters of the six rivers in the Indus river system between India and Pakistan. Pakistan has denied involvement in the April 2025 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians, and has rejected India's allegations.

In addition to addressing the Indus Waters Treaty issue, Sharif is expected to highlight the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, a trilateral collective security arrangement signed on August 7 in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. The agreement establishes a defense framework in which an armed attack on one member is considered an attack on all three members: Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkiye. Sharif is anticipated to be the fourth speaker during the second half of the 81st UN General Assembly session, which runs from September 22 to 26.