WASHINGTON: At a time when the bilateral relationship between Pakistan and the US is at its "lowest ebb", the Obama administration hopes to sweeten the ties with its mango diplomacy.
The first consignment of mangoes from Pakistan, that too the mouthwatering 'Chaunsa' variety, is all set to land in the US this week, thus ending the decades old ban on import of any variety of mango from Pakistan.
Incidentally the mangoes are flown from Pakistan to Chicago, the home town of President Barack Obama which also has a significant Pakistani community.
The Pakistani Consulate in Chicago has organized a "grand mango arrival ceremony" on Friday, a Pakistani embassy official said.
Administration officials said Pakistan started calling for lifting ban on its mangoes soon after the US gave permission for import of Alphonso mango from India; the first consignment of which arrived in US in 2007.
The process was accelerated when secretary of state Hillary Clinton during her visit to Pakistan last year announced to lift import restrictions on Chaunsa variety of mango from Pakistan.
However, it could not make to the US last year because of the floods.
The first consignment of Chaunsa mangoes, said an official of the Pakistan Consulate in Chicago, would land in Chicago on July 27. Following which the mangoes would be treated at a radiation facility. The consulate has organized the mango arrival ceremony on July 29.
Even though import of Chaunsa - which is also grown in parts of Uttar Pradesh in India - gives a sense of accomplishment to the Pakistani officials, mango traders in the US argue that it is likely to meet the same fate as that of the Alphonso vareity from India.
Because of the high cost factor involved due to its importation by flight, both Chaunsa and Alphonso would remain beyond the reach of the common man here.
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