ISLAMABAD, Dec 6: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said on Tuesday a just settlement of the Kashmir dispute was a fundamental aspect of the ongoing peace process with India. “Progress has been made in our composite dialogue process (with India) and we hope it will help in promoting peace and cooperation in South Asia,” he said at a banquet he hosted for the visiting Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg.

Reiterating desire for peace and stability in the region, he said Pakistan was seeking resolution of all differences with India.

Mr Aziz reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment in the global fight against terrorism but called for a holistic approach to stamp out the menace by addressing its root causes.

“Pakistan is a frontline state in the war on terror and has demonstrated its commitment to eliminate this scourge by breaking back of the terrorist network in the region.”

However, the prime minister said, a lasting solution to this problem required a holistic approach to eliminate root causes of terrorism which existed due to deprivation and injustice.

He said Pakistan was also trying to promote greater understanding between the Islamic world and the West.

The prime minister, in this context, referred to the concept of enlightened moderation put forward by President Pervez Musharraf which advocated reform of Muslim societies.

In the same breath, he called upon the Western powers to help resolve issues that have caused anger and frustration among Muslims.

“Towards this end, we advocate harmony and dialogue among different civilizations,” he added.

Prime Minister Aziz appreciated Norwegian role in the maintenance of international peace and stability in conflict areas such as the Middle East, Sri Lanka and Sudan.

He expressed Pakistan’s desire to facilitate the efforts for achieving peace and justice in Middle East.

“The beginning that we have made by establishing contacts with Israel will, we hope, contribute to this objective,” he added.

He said Pakistan was committed to promoting peace and stability in Afghanistan. “We believe that a peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan is in the strategic interests of Pakistan,” he said and added that Pakistan had assisted the Karzai government in reconstruction and rehabilitation.

“Prosperity in Afghanistan will encourage voluntary return of three million Afghan refugees who have been in Pakistan for over 20 years,” he added.

“We have also facilitated democratic process in Afghanistan apart from providing unrestricted trade access which has boosted bilateral trade amounting to over a billion dollars,” he added.

Prime Minister Aziz highlighted Pakistan’s strategic location as gateway to Central Asia, South Asia and Middle East.

He expressed the hope that with the completion of a new port in Gwadar and opening of transport linkages, Pakistan would be able to provide access to landlocked Central Asian Republics and a convenient trans-shipment point for the Gulf region.

“Pakistan is, therefore, poised to become the hub of multi-dimensional inter-regional cooperation,” he said, adding the country had already embarked on this course with plans to lay gas pipelines from Iran and Turkmenistan to India via Pakistan.

Prime Minister Aziz welcomed his Norwegian counterpart for the first visit by a head of government of a Scandinavian country and said it would be a milestone in their bilateral relations.

He lauded Norwegian support for the earthquake victims and hoped Norway would remain engaged with Pakistan in the process of rehabilitation and reconstruction. —-APP