BEIJING, Dec 24: President Pervez Musharraf on Monday vowed to crack down on groups accused of attacking the Indian parliament provided the evidence was found.

“Yes, if we find evidence of it, we would like to move against them,” Gen Musharraf said in response to journalists’ questions in southern Guangzhou city of Guangdong province.

“We are already taking measures to move against all groups that are involved in any form of terrorism anywhere in the world,” he said in television footage broadcast on CNN.

Addressing the first-ever conference on promotion of trade and investment between China and Pakistan, he said: Gen Musharraf said that Pakistan felt secure and strong in the region because of Chinese assistance in the defence sector.

“We are lucky to have Chinese assistance in the defence sector,” he said. The conference was attended by 250 prominent Chinese businessmen and members of a 40-strong Pakistan trade delegation. It was aimed at exploring new avenues of economic cooperation between the two nations and increasing volume of their bilateral trade.

The president assured the Chinese business community that the economic and political restructuring and reforms introduced by his government would remain unchanged, even after the election due next year. “The foreign investment would get legal cover,” he added.

The law and order situation in the country is quite satisfactory and conducive to business activities, he said, adding that a number of incentives had been provided to foreigners to ensure they got best possible return on their investment.

Gen Musharraf described his visit to China as “highly successful”. The leadership of the two countries had decided to strengthen their economic partnership and open a new chapter in their relations, he added.

It has been decided to transform our political and strategic interaction into economic collaboration, the president said. He said Pakistan would learn from the experiences of Chinese in socio-economic development.

—Agencies