QUETTA, Dec 15: President Gen Pervez Musharraf has said Pakistan wants to resolve all disputes, including that of Kashmir, with India peacefully and the process of dialogue between the two countries at different levels is in progress.
He was speaking to under-training student officers at the Command and Staff College here on Wednesday. Corps Commander Lt-Gen Hamid Rub Nawaz and Staff College Commandant Maj Gen Mohsin Kamal were present on the occasion.
"We want to settle Kashmir issue and all other conflicts with India through peaceful process and negotiations," President Musharraf said, and pointed out that confidence-building process between the two countries was moving ahead.
Referring to the peaceful nuclear programme of the country, he said: "Pakistan's nuclear assets are in safe hands." Speaking on the Afghan situation, he said Pakistan's relations with Afghanistan had become stable and all misunderstandings between the two countries had been removed.
The Afghan people, he added, had realized that Pakistan was playing an important role in the development of their country. President Musharraf said Pakistan had become an important country in the international arena as a result of policies adopted by the government and the entire world had focused on Pakistan.
He said the development process in Pakistan had been geared up, the burden of foreign debts reduced and foreign investment in the country was rising. Referring to terrorism, he said Pakistan was against all kinds of terrorism and fighting against it not only because Islam was defamed due to it but Pakistan was also getting a bad name abroad.
The president said Pakistan had conducted military action in South Waziristan due to the presence of foreign terrorists there who were involved in terrorist activities on both sides of the border. That situation, he added, was creating various problems for Pakistan.
The Pakistan Army, he said, had played an important role in eliminating the foreign terrorists and their local agents in South Waziristan. "Local people and tribesmen had understood the ground realities and now the situation is becoming normal in the troubled area," President Musharraf told the under-training officers.
He deliberated upon the effects of Sept 11 attacks on the United States on Pakistan society in detail and informed the student officers about the steps taken by his government to overcome the serious situation.
President Musharraf said today Islamic countries were defamed due to terrorism at international level as Muslims were found involved in most of such incidents. He said Islamic countries should have taken steps for removing the bad impression against them.
At the same time, he added, the Western world should have also taken steps for resolving the issues of Kashmir and Palestine through political means. He said steps should be taken and implemented speedily for resolving these issues.
"We must curb all kinds of terrorism for achieving the goal of speedy development and prosperity of Pakistan," Gen Musharraf said, adding that through overcoming this problem a better life could be ensured for future generations.
Speaking on the role of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), he said the platform of the organization should be made more strong and stable. This, he added, would help Muslim world achieve befitting status in the international arena.
He said he had held talks with heads of the Islamic countries on the ideas for making the organization more strong and effective. "I am hopeful that the OIC would improve its performance in future," President Musharraf said.
The president visited Corps Headquarters and met Corps Commander Lt-Gen Hamid Rub Nawaz and discussed matters of professional interest. Earlier, amid tight security, Balochistan Governor Owais Ahmed Ghani warmly received the president at the Quetta airport.
The president is on a two-day visit to the province on Wednesday. Provincial ministers, Commander Quetta and other senior civil and military officers were also present at the airport on the occasion.
