WASHINGTON: US Defence Secretary Mark Esper is postponing his upcoming trip to Pakistan, India and Uzbekistan in order to help manage the Department of Defence’s coronavirus response, a department spokesperson said on Tuesday. “Out of an abundance of caution, the secretary of defence has decided to postpone his travel,” Department of Defense spokesperson Alyssa Farah said in a statement, adding that the trip would occur at “a later date”. He was expected to visit Pakistan later this month, as relations between Islamabad and Washington have seen significant improvement after former played a significant role in brokering the landmark US-Taliban deal last month. On Tuesday, two more cases of novel coronavirus emerged from Sindh, pushing the tally to 15 in the province and 18 in Pakistan, the Sindh Health Department said. So far 18 Pakistanis have been tested positive for COVID-19, the mysterious viral pneumonia-like disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

Source: Pakistan Today March 11, 2020 13:30 UTC