The US ambassador in Pakistan Richard Olson has assured that his country will not repeat mistakes it made in 1989 while withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan.Richard was addressing at the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad on "the United States' relationship with Pakistan and Afghanistan, now and beyond the 2014 security transition."

Olson said, "even as we work with Pakistan to ensure that 2014 is not a repeat of 1989, we are not myopically focused on December 2014. Instead, we continue to look over the horizon. We see a Pakistan and a region that will continue to grow in importance."2014 is not 1989," he said adding, "The United States recognizes the mistakes of the past, and will not disengage from the region."

The US relationship with Pakistan is not shaped solely by US's commitments and responsibilities in Afghanistan, he said.The ambassador called for the United States and Pakistan to work together with purpose to facilitate a negotiated peace in Afghanistan. "For the sake of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the region, Pakistan's full support to an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned peace process is needed now," he added.

The US ambassador commenting on the forthcoming general elections in the country said it is a historic and defining moment for Pakistan, when, for the first time, one civilian government transfers power to the next in accordance with the constitution, and reflecting the will of the Pakistani people.Moreover, Ambassador Olson also underscored that US assistance to Pakistan in energy, economic development, education, and health is a tangible sign of the United States' long-term investment in Pakistan's future.