Terrorists can’t use Pakistani territory: Musharraf’s assurance to US legislators
By Raja Asghar
ISLAMABAD, Aug 23: President General Pervez Musharraf told the visiting US lawmakers on Saturday that Pakistan would not allow use of its soil for terrorist activity across its borders.
He, however, emphasized “the need for timely exchange of intelligence between Pakistan and Afghanistan in this context” at a meeting held with the six-member Congressional delegation in Rawalpindi, a foreign ministry statement said.
“The president reiterated... that Pakistan would not tolerate any terrorist activity across its borders,” it said, apparently referring to recent Afghan complaints that militants of the Taliban were attacking the government positions from the Pakistani border.
The two sides had “a wide-ranging exchange of views on bilateral cooperation and regional security issues, particularly with reference to Iraq and Afghanistan,” the statement said. The delegation had earlier paid a visit to the two countries.
Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri and US ambassador Nancy Powell also attended the meeting, lasting over an hour.
“There was a convergence of views on the need of improving security and services for the Iraqi people,” it said.
The delegation, led by Senator John McCain (Republican-Arizona), had arrived in Islamabad overnight from Afghanistan. It included Senators Lindsey Graham (Republican-South Carolina), Maria Cantwell (Democrat-Washington), John Sununu (Republican-New Hampshire), and Kay Baily Hutchison (Republican-Texas), and Congressman Jim Kolbe (Republican-Arizona).
The statement said the delegation members appreciated “the important role of Pakistan as a valuable partner of the United States in combating international terrorism”.
They offered cooperation in advancing a multi-year assistance programme for Pakistan announced after President Musharraf’s meeting with US President George W. Bush at Camp David in June, it said.
Earlier, the delegation had a breakfast meeting, hosted by the US ambassador, with Mr Kasuri, Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz, Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar Khan and Investment and Privatization Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh.
The meetings covered the full range of Pakistan-US relations, foreign ministry spokesman Masood Khan told AFP. He said Pakistani leaders had urged greater support for Pakistan in the US legislature.
“The two sides also discussed better coordination and cooperation in economic, commercial and defence fields,” he said.
ISLAMABAD, Aug 23: President General Pervez Musharraf told the visiting US lawmakers on Saturday that Pakistan would not allow use of its soil for terrorist activity across its borders.
