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ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Monday said that all issues with India, including that of withdrawal of troops from Siachen and the Kashmir dispute, must be resolved through dialogue.
“I strongly believe that better sense will prevail on both sides and we will resolve these issues through dialogue,” he told a conference in Islamabad.
The premier recalled that at the time he assumed office in 2008, Pakistan's relations with India, Afghanistan and Iran were not satisfactory.
However, he said he took the initiative in normalising relations with India in particular and met Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at an international summit and stressed for pursuing the policy of dialogue.
The premier said it was agreed in his meetings with Singh that issues, including Kashmir, Sir Creek, Siachen, water disputes and terrorism, could be resolved through political will.
Prime Minister Gilani said that the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) had run the country democratically unlike many others who were dictatorial.
He said the government had to bear a loss of one billion (100,000,000) rupees in the ‘war against terrorism’.
The prime minister moreover said that the era of wars had come to an end and now solutions to existing problems were to be determined by formulating efficient foreign policy.
Addressing the conference, the prime minister moreover said that the government considered education as vital for society and mentioned that with Rs 22 billion, infrastructure of broadband was being set up in the country to encourage internet use to gain knowledge. — APP/DawnNews
