Omar1984
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ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has said the military aid announced by the US is less than the amount Pakistan has already spent. He said Pakistan’s military is patriotic and cannot give wrong advice to the government.
He said Pakistan was a responsible nuclear weapons state and its nuclear capability is only for deterrence. “We are well aware of the responsibilities that come with this status,” he said while talking to office-bearers of the Diplomatic Correspondents Association of Pakistan (DCAP) at the Prime Minister’s House here on Friday.
He said Pakistan was demanding of the United States civil nuclear technology cooperation on the pattern of India. He expressed his concern over the situation in the occupied Kashmir, saying Pakistan remained seriously concerned over the prevailing situation in the Indian-occupied Kashmir. “Pakistan shall continue to extend its full moral, political and diplomatic support to the Kashmiri people in their just cause,” he added.
Prime Minister Gilani said lasting peace and security in South Asia could only be achieved with a sincere effort to resolve the longstanding disputes. He said this required leadership, vision and courage, and the only way forward for India and Pakistan was dialogue. “I have had some productive exchanges with my Indian counterpart, but I am disappointed that the promise of those meetings has not yet been realised because my Indian counterpart faced pressure from his parliament as well as internal pressure due to which progress was not made on the resumption of dialogue,” he added.
About the statement of US special envoy Richard Holbrooke on Kashmir, he said Pakistan wanted the resolution of the Kashmir issue, and if the United States played any role to resolve the issue, then it would be an important step. “When the Obama administration came into power and there was a thinking to give a role to former US President Bill Clinton to resolve the Kashmir issue between Pakistan and India, but Richard Holbrooke was given the task on Pakistan and Afghanistan.”
On the issue of Afghanistan, Prime Minister Gilani was of the view that Pakistan must be involved in the ‘negotiation process’ because it was a part of the solution to the Afghan problem.
He said Pakistan had high stakes in Afghanistan’s stability, unity, territorial integrity and prosperity. “We support efforts for promoting an Afghan-led and Afghan-driven reconciliation process. Without peace in Afghanistan, there can be no peace in our region,” he added.
He said during the last visit of President Hamid Karzai to Islamabad, it was agreed that Afghanistan would share the plan with Pakistan. “So far, this plan has not been shared with Pakistan and once information is provided, a decision would be taken as to how Pakistan can cooperate,” he added.
He said: “While our destinies are intertwined, our circumstances are distinct and apart. The AfPak concept is inherently flawed. We have strongly rejected such concept.” He said those who claimed that the top leadership of the Taliban was in Quetta or any other area of Pakistan, they should prove it. “The United States is a superpower and have the means and technology, it should share intelligence information with us and we will take action,” he said.
About the drone attacks, Prime Minister Gilani said the Musharraf government had allowed the use of drones for surveillance only, but not to launch missile attacks. “We have told the United States in categorical terms that drone attacks are counterproductive. We are also trying to convince the United States either to provide the drone technology or share actionable intelligence so that Pakistan’s own forces could take action inside our territory,” he said.
The premier contradicted reports that Pakistan had provided a base to the United States to operate the drones. To a question, he said Pakistan was fighting a war against terror for its own and our people and soldiers have sacrificed their lives and these sacrifices were recognised internationally. “The United States recognises the sacrifices rendered by Pakistan during the war on terror and this was reiterated during the meeting of President Obama with the Pakistani delegation at the strategic dialogue in Washington.”
About the progress on the Friends of Democratic Pakistan (FoDP), he urged the international community to fulfil the promises made in the meeting held in Tokyo and materialise the pledges. Earlier, in his opening remarks, Prime Minister Gilani said Pakistan’s friendship with China was time-tested and an important factor of peace and security in our region.
He said expanding the Sino-Pak collaboration in the economic sphere would translate into greater prosperity for the region as a whole. He said Pakistan would continue to strengthen its comprehensive strategic and cooperative relations with the People’s Republic of China. The premier said Iran was an important neighbour, a friend and a partner.
He said Pakistan-Iran relations were deeply-rooted in history, and spiritual and cultural bonds and the Iran-Pakistan Gas pipeline project was one of the symbols of our quest for shared prosperity. “We support a peaceful solution to the Iranian nuclear issue. Any other course could have disastrous consequences for the region as a whole,” he added.
On Pakistan’s relations with the Arab countries, he said Pakistan enjoyed special relations with all the Arab and Islamic countries. He said Pakistan was also reaching out to the states of Africa and Latin America. “Our vision East Asia inspires us to develop closer partnerships in the realms of trade and economy, and give tangible expression to the concept of Greater Asian Neighbourhood,” he added.
On the relations with the European Union, the prime minister said: “We seek trade not aid. We wish to promote mutually-beneficial partnerships”. He said both the president and he had had excellent meetings with the Russian leadership. “We are working together bilaterally and through multilateral processes to promote shared perspectives for peace and development,” he added.
He said Pakistan believed in the purposes and principles of the United Nations. “We are active participants in the UN processes, be it climate change, arms control and disarmament or human rights,” he added. He said Pakistan was among the largest troops contributors to the UN peacekeeping missions.
