Spokesperson Briefings

Date: 13/08/2007

Record of Press Briefing on 13 August 2007

There was no opening statement.

Question/Answer Session

Asked to comment on the veracity of reports by western sources that they knew the exact location of the nuclear weapons of Pakistan , and if that was true then who had provided them with that information and what steps were being taken to protect them, the Spokesperson said:

We look at these reports as speculative essentially meant to add spice to an oft repeated tendentious refrain and claims that go around. There is no truth in them.

Asked, if she agreed that the Taliban issue still remained a problem as the Taliban did not participate in the Pakistan Afghanistan Jirga, though both countries appeared locked in a marriage of convenience, the Spokesperson said:

The Jirga process can only be looked at as a positive development. It was an important event in which several hundred notables from the two countries came together and held discussion. And this kind of interaction and dialogue is positive. The Jirga has also made a number of important decisions. One of the decisions was to establish a council of 50 notables - 25 from each country to pursue dialogue with opponents. This recognises the fact that reconciliation in Afghanistan is needed and it can be undertaken. How the Jirga council would interact with those who are not part of the Jirga process and how the dialogue process would proceed is for the two co-chairs to decide. I would not comment on that but this is a positive development and there have been a number of good decisions.

Asked, to elaborate on any new developments in the Pakistan-India Peace Process, the Spokesperson said:

We are currently in the 4th round of the Composite Dialogue. There have been a number of meetings. The Commerce Secretaries met recently, at the end of July to be precise. They made good progress and we issued a press release on that. Subsequently, the working group on trade matters also met and it also made good progress. There are many positives in this process. As we keep saying, we would like to see forward movement on the core issues, on issues which have been the reason for conflict and tension in the region, most notably the Jammu and Kashmir dispute which needs to be resolved in accordance with the aspirations of the Kashmiri people. Any solution has to be acceptable to Pakistan and India and more importantly to the people of Kashmir .

Asked, with reference to the Jirga and people who did not participate in it (whether they were Al Qaeda, Taliban or extremists) since Pakistan claimed to have no Al Qaeda or Taliban in its territory how did it plan to identify who to talk to, the Spokesperson said:

I do not know how Al Qaeda figures in those who need to be talked to. Al Qaeda are not Afghans. The term that has been used in Pushto or Urdu is “Mukhalifeen” which roughly translates to opponents. Those opponents are Afghans.

Asked, if all the opponents were Afghans and none of them lived in North Waziristan , the Spokesperson said:

They are not living in North Waziristan . As the President also said and as we have been saying in the past too, they do receive some sort of help from our tribal areas but we do not agree with the contention that the insurgency is being sustained from our areas. I saw a headline in a very reputable foreign newspaper that President Musharraf has made the rare admission that Taliban are getting support from Pakistan . This is not exactly true. What he said was there is some sympathy for them and there maybe some support. Rather he said that some support goes from here but on the basis of that support it cannot be concluded that the insurgency is being sustained from Pakistan . That would be a wrong conclusion to draw. We want to stop that. We want to stop all assistance and help from our country for any militant activity in Afghanistan and we believe that the Jirga process is a good development in the sense that it widens the scope of the dialogue and these notables can have an influence in promoting peace in these areas.

Asked, for comments with reference to the Foreign Minister's comments in his constituencies, who rarely spoke to the media alone except when holding press conferences after bilateral talks, about the slowing down of the peace process, whereas people in his constituency were not interested in these matters and if this was because of upcoming elections in Pakistan or for some other reason, the Spokesperson said:

I am sure you are in touch with the Foreign Minister's Office. If you have any reservations about him not talking to the media here, though I believe he speak to the media very regularly, these reservations can be brought to his notice. I am sure he is in the best position to respond to that. As regards his comments on foreign policy issues in his constituency, as Pakistanis they are also interested in the peace process, in the Government's position on the Kashmir issue. These are national issues and every Pakistani is interested in them.

Regarding his reported comments on the peace process slowing down, I did not see the remarks you are referring to. We have not said that peace process has slowed down. The peace process is continuing. We have put in place a number of CBMs. What we need is to take advantage of this improved atmosphere and move towards the resolution of disputes. There, we believe, we could have moved faster.

Asked, if it was acceptable diplomatic protocol for the US Secretary of State to call the President in the middle of the night and if the President had been called directly or the call had gone through the Foreign Office, the Spokesperson said:

What do you think the President picked up the telephone himself? What do you mean by direct calls? There are no direct calls to the President by any outsider. These calls are routed either through our embassies or through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. These calls are fixed after checking the President's availability and inclination to receive the call. In the case you are referring to, the request for call by the US Secretary of State was made to our embassy in Washington which arranged the call after checking the President's availability. That is how such calls are made.

Asked, for the position of the Government of Pakistan on statements made by certain Pakistani members of the Jirga that the insurgency in Afghanistan was because of the presence of foreign troops there and the demand that these troops be replaced by those from Muslim countries, the Spokesperson said:

First, one person made these remarks. I do not see this reflected in the statement issued by the Jirga, therefore this is a non issue. If it were an idea that the participants considered worth pursuing, they would have reflected it in the declaration.

Asked, with reference to the Foreign Minister press conference in Lahore where he said that Pakistan needed to maintain the balance of power in the region and would not tolerate any nuclear disparity and also statements after the NCA meeting, how Pakistan aimed to create a parity in nuclear weapons in the light of the recent Indo US nuclear deal and also considering that Pakistan and India have a working group on conventional and non conventional armament, whether Pakistan ever officially brought up the topic of nuclear parity with India, the Spokesperson said:

No, we have some confidence building measures both in conventional and nuclear field and we maintain this dialogue to see where we can have further confidence building measures and how we can improve safety and security in the sense that there is no accidental use of nuclear weapons.

 As regards the question of parity, this is not the first time that Foreign Minister or NCA has said it. Incidentally I have the press release which was issued after NCA meeting. What we have said is that while continuing to act with responsibility in maintaining credible minimum deterrence and avoiding an arms race, Pakistan will neither be oblivious to its security environment, nor the needs of its economic development. Now the economic development part is about the nuclear power plants for energy. We have made it very clear that we will maintain credible minimum deterrence. For deterrence to be credible it has to be upgraded and maintained.

Asked, regarding media reports that some high level American officials were scheduled to visit Pakistan this month, what the current status of Pakistan-US relationship was, the Spokesperson said:

Frankly, we have been talking about every aspect of the relationship between Pakistan and US regularly. It is a relationship which is on the move, a lot has been happening. There have been some negative statements. We have made our position very clear on those issues. There are many positive things which are going on. Yes, the US working level officials continue visiting Pakistan from time to time and that is part of the process of building up this relationship.

Asked with reference to the concern expressed by some US officials and think tanks about the safety and security of the nuclear weapons of Pakistan in the post-Musharraf scenario, if she thought Musharraf as a person was responsible for the security of the nuclear assets of Pakistan , the Spokesperson said:

Our press release has already addressed these issues.

Asked, if the Pakistani Foreign Minister could make a call to President Bush in the middle of the night, the Spokesperson said:

Well, it depends on President Bush and if he is ready to receive the call.

Asked, when Boucher was coming and what the agenda of the visit was, the Spokesperson said:

I have just responded to this question. I do not have any dates for his visit.

Asked to describe 60 years of Pakistan 's relationship with India and what was Pakistan 's vision of this relationship in the next 60 years? the Spokesperson said:

It is a question that requires at least the next 60 minutes but I will try to respond to it briefly. It has been a complex relationship. When Pakistan and India got independence, there was a lot of bloodshed to the chagrin of the founder of Pakistan , Mr Mohammed Ali Jinnah who had hoped for a very constructive relationship between the two countries. Initially there were disputes over asset distribution and thanks to the departing British, we also inherited the Kashmir dispute and there were a number of other issues as well which kept our relationship below normal.

We have had conflicts, we have had tensions and we have had periods of negotiations and engagements. In the past, the pattern was that there would be negotiations, there would be breakdown followed by a period of conflict or tension and then it would be back to the negotiating table. In the last few years, we have seen a sustained effort to engage in constructive dialogue process and as the leaders of both the countries often say these have been the most intensive negotiations especially on the Kashmir dispute.

What we hope to achieve in the next 60 years is a neighbourhood where we do not have any disputes - a neighbourhood in which we would have economic cooperation. We would be able to take advantage of the economic opportunities in each others' countries. Like the other regions in the world, we would like to have closer economic cooperation and build trust between the two countries so that the whole region can benefit from. Our vision of Pakistan in the next 60 years is of peace, prosperity and good relations with all the countries particularly in our neighbourhood.

Asked, if after 60 years the division of assets between the Pakistan and India was complete, the Spokesperson said:

Well I do not know if it is settled 100%. I cannot say exactly what the status is. I would have to check. I was talking about the issues at the time of independence such as division of assets, movement of population and then political disputes.

Asked, to elaborate on the nature of the engagements the President had, with reference to announcements before the Pak-Afghan Jirga that the President was not travelling to Kabul and also if this had anything to do with the possibility of imposition of emergency in the country or if there were security concerns, the Spokesperson said:

First of all, as the Foreign Office Spokesperson I am not aware of all the engagements of the President. What we said was that it was because of the President's engagements in the capital, we did not talk about any security concerns. About emergency, various Government Ministers and spokesmen have categorically stated that there was no decision to impose emergency.

Asked that since some say that life starts after 60, if it could be hoped that Presidents would not receive anymore midnight calls in the next 60 years, the Spokesperson said:

First, it was not a midnight call. Secondly, as I said, the calls are received depending on the availability and inclination of the President. Thirdly, I cannot speak for all the past and future presidents.