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| 05 May 2004 | Wednesday | 14 Rabi-ul-Awwal 1425 |
President, PM pledge to eradicate terrorism
ISLAMABAD, May 4: President Gen Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Jamali at a meeting on Tuesday reviewed the overall regional, global as well as internal security situation and reiterated the government's pledge to stamp out the bane of terrorism from Pakistan.
The meeting, convened by the president, was held at the president's camp office in Rawalpindi. The two leaders strongly condemned the terrorist attack in Gwadar on Monday.
They directed the authorities concerned to take all possible measures for arresting the culprits and awarding them an exemplary punishment. Three Chinese were killed in the attack and 11 others were wounded, including nine Chinese.
Sources privy to the two-hour meeting said that both the leaders expressed satisfaction over the government's foreign policy directions in the South Asian region and other parts of the world.
"There was a general consensus that the ongoing peace process between Pakistan and India was on course and things were moving in the right direction," an informed source said.
An official statement issued after the meeting said: "It reviewed the international and regional geo-political situation, with particular emphasis on South Asia."
On the occasion, Foreign Secretary Riaz Khokhar gave a detailed briefing on key foreign policy issues and the progress made on certain initiatives taken by Pakistan, sources said. Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri, senior foreign office officials and representatives of top security institutions also attended the meeting.
According to sources, issues that figured in the meeting included: situation in Afghanistan and Iraq, Kashmir policy, reduction of troops, assumption of Pakistan's presidency of the UNSC, new resolution on Iraq expected this month, restructuring of the OIC, nuclear non-proliferation and the recently-adopted UN resolution on WMDs, Pakistan's ongoing cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, Pakistan's inclusion in the ARF security grouping and its re-entry into the Commonwealth.
But the sources did not divulge any details of the discussion on these issues. The official statement said: "The president and prime minister exchanged views on the premier's successful visit to China and Far Eastern countries. They expressed satisfaction over the support extended by these countries for Pakistan's entry into the Asean Regional Forum."
GWADAR ATTACK: Meanwhile, a foreign ministry statement on Monday said: "The president and prime minister have condemned the Gwadar incident and sent instant communications to the president and prime minister of China, respectively."
Immediately after the attack, the president ordered an inquiry into the incident and spoke to Chinese Ambassador Zhang Chunxiang. At the foreign office, Foreign Secretary Riaz Khokhar handed over the letters of the president and prime minister to the Chinese ambassador in Islamabad, Zhang Chunxiang.
President Gen Pervez Musharraf, in his letter to Chinese President Hu Jintao, strongly condemned the attack and underlined that the government and the people of Pakistan would never allow a few terrorists to undermine Pakistan-China friendship and cooperation.
Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, in his letter, assured his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao that "we will leave no stone unturned to apprehend the culprits, who will be given the most severe punishment". The prime minister has also condoled with the families of the victims.
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