PESHAWAR, Dec 30: Central leader of Pakistan People’s Party (Sherpao), Sikandar Sherpao has said that the escalating tension between India and Pakistan would affect the prospects of peace and development in the region.

Speaking at a party meeting here on Sunday at village Ziam Haware, tehsil Tangi, District Charsadda, Sikandar contended that South Asia needed peaceful atmosphere in order to put the region on the path of economic development.

Escalation of tension was not in the interest of the people of the two countries and the current state of affairs would further deteriorate the situation, he maintained.

India and Pakistan should cooperate with each other for the elimination of terrorism from the region, he observed.

He said that Pakistan itself was a target of terrorism and therefore New Delhi should realize the gravity of the situation and stop negative propaganda against Pakistan immediately.

Sikandar Sherpao also criticized the Indian ban on overflight facility and reduction in the diplomatic staff.

The diplomatic war launched by India was an aggressive stance and would harm the peace process, he stated.

The PPP leader hailed the statements of President Pervez Musharraf and Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, in which both the leaders had ruled out the possibility of war.