January 11, 2003	Saturday	Ziqa'ad 7, 1423

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ISLAMABAD, Jan 10: President Gen Pervez Musharraf said here on Friday Pakistan and the United States needed to have a “broad-based strategic vision” to further develop their relations on solid grounds.

Speaking at the inaugural session of the 2-day National Defence College and US National Defence University symposium, he said both the countries required to review their political and economic relations based on mutual trust and broader understanding.

According to informed sources, the president rejected assertions that individual events could create any misunderstanding and disrupt their 50-year-old relations.

The president, sources said, called for removing various negative notions and apprehensions regarding Pakistan-US ties. Pakistan’s relations with Bush administration were good and minor events would not affect them.

The sources said that Gen Musharraf traced the history of relations between the two countries and his future vision to improve them.

The president said that Pakistan was a strong ally of the US and was extending all possible support to it against terrorism. He pointed out that Pakistan was committed to fulfilling all international obligations to hunt down terrorists.

He stressed the need for strengthening defence relations between the two countries. In this context, he referred to Defence Consultative Group which met in Pakistan after a long time a few months ago and expressed the hope that this would lead to greater cooperation in all the important defence fields.

The sources said that the president regretted Pakistan was ignored by some US governments in the past, although Islamabad had always cooperated with Washington.

He was of the view that renewed understanding, developed between the two countries during the last three years will help them work together for international peace.

According to ISPR, the president said that Pakistan valued its long-standing close ties with the United States.

He said the leadership of both countries believed that their relationship should be broad-based, sustained and not event-related.