ISLAMABAD, June 5: Pakistan said on Thursday that the Danish embassy blast would not affect the reconciliation process with tribal militants.

When his attention was drawn to Al Qaeda claiming responsibility for the blast, Foreign Office spokesman Mohmmad Sadiq said that the claim, made in a statement hosted on internet, would have no bearing on the talks.

“Since the talks are not with terrorist organisations or with terrorists this statement doesn’t make any difference.”

Clarifying the government position, he said the political dialogue was not with Al Qaeda terrorists or their terrorist partners in Pakistan, but with the Mehsud tribesmen and notables.

He said that international partners were being kept informed about the dialogue with the tribals and a number of countries said they understood the policy.

He said that the talks were meant to supplement the military strategy and were important for initiating socio-economic development plans in the tribal areas.

“Peace in Fata will ensure access to the government to engage in socio-economic development of the area.”

Referring to reports about movement of troops in South Waziristan, he said they were not being withdrawn but repositioned in order to enhance logistic agility and effectiveness of action.

The spokesman said that Danish officials in Islamabad had shared information about the blast with local investigators.

They had provided the video-footage of embassy’s surveillance cameras to police which shows a speeding Suzuki car with a diplomatic licence plate exploding in front of the embassy.

The spokesman clarified that no Danish investigation team was in the capital.

He said only a team comprising diplomats and some technical persons had been sent by Denmark primarily to assess the damage caused to the embassy building and to offer condolences to families of two local embassy employees killed in the incident.

“There are no investigation experts in the team, but of course they are talking to the local police investigators.”

In view of the incident, the Foreign Office has encouraged the diplomatic missions to move to the diplomatic enclave.

The government has also announced an extension of the existing diplomatic enclave.

The enclave spans over 788 acres and another 784 acres are planned to be added to it.

Mr Sadiq said that it was for the embassies and their respective governments to decide to acquire land in the diplomatic enclave, construct and shift there.

On the IPI gas pipeline, he said that Pakistan had suggested to India that differences on the issue of transit fee that had been holding back the signing of the agreement could be sorted out by following international practices.

“IPI wouldn’t be the only gas pipeline passing through a third country, there are scores of such pipelines and there are established international practices and we would like that to be followed in case of IPI,” Mr Sadiq said.

The spokesman said that the date for tripartite Pakistan-Afghanistan-Turkey conference to be held in Istanbul had not yet been finalised.

He said that after finalisation of the date the government would decide who would represent Pakistan at the conference.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan, during his visit to Islamabad in April, had said that the tripartite conference would be held in the last week of June.

President Musharraf attended the conference held last year.

He said that Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi would pay a day-long visit to Kabul on Friday to discuss the recent missile attack on Damadola, attacks on Pakistan’s military posts and other issues straining relations between the two countries.

Mr Qureshi’s first visit to Afghanistan as foreign minister on the invitation of his counterpart Mr Rangin Dadfar Spanta comes on the heels of allegations that Pakistan’s talks with militants in tribal areas were resulting in increase in insurgent attacks in Afghanistan.

“The foreign minister will raise all issues, including the recent missile strikes from across the border on Pakistani tribal regions,” Mr Sadiq said.

During his visit, the foreign minister will also call on President Mr Hamid Karzai.

Mr Qureshi will later visit Paris from June 10-14 to attend the International Conference in Support of Afghanistan.

The conference is being held as a sequel to London’s Afghanistan Compact.

“In the Paris Conference, Pakistan and Afghanistan will work closely with each other as announced by foreign minister Qureshi during the Afghan foreign minister’s visit to Islamabad last month,” Mr Sadiq said.

PM’s SAUDI ARABIA VISIT: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will depart on a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia on Friday.