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Spokesperson Briefings

Date: 21/08/2006

RECORD OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESSED BY THE FOREIGN OFFICE SPOKESPERSON ON 21 AUGUST, 2006

No statement was made in the beginning, and the Press Conference opened with Question/Answer Session .

QUESTION/ANSWER SESSION

  Asked whether a meeting between Pakistan and India was taking place on the Sir Creek issue in the month of August, the Spokesperson said:

During the last meeting of the Secretaries Defence of Pakistan and India on Sir Creek, there was agreement on a joint survey and it was agreed that the experts of the two countries will meet on 23-24 August in Islamabad to discuss modalities for the joint survey. We have not received any indication from the Indian side that a delegation is arriving for the meeting.

Asked about the agenda of President Musharraf's proposed visit to the U.S, the Spokesperson said:

We have not officially confirmed or announced his visit. If the visit takes place, we will announce the details closer to the date of the visit.

In response to a question about the President Musharraf's interview to an Indian magazine in which he had reportedly talked about the role of intelligence agencies and whether there was a realization on the part of both India and Pakistan that henceforth the agencies from both sides should not be allowed to disrupt Pakistan-India peace process, the Spokesperson said:

The President's observations are quite clear. Basically he was responding to a question about the allegations that Pakistani agencies were behind the terrorist attacks in India . The President had rejected these allegations. Pakistan does not, as a reflex action accuse others of involvement in terrorist acts in Pakistan . Even when we have evidence, we avoid hurling accusations at others. Basically the President was talking about a mindset – a mindset where immediate accusations leveled. The President was talking about the need to avoid that.

There is no specific proposal but our policy is very clear. We cooperate with the international community on the basis of evidence and information. We have repeatedly said that if India were to share evidence with us like the other members of international community do, we would be willing to cooperate with India as well. But we cannot accept baseless statements and allegations.

Asked about Pakistan 's response to the Indian Prime Minister's reported suggestion that more routes along the LoC be opened up in order to increase people to people exchange between the two parts of Kashmir , the Spokesperson said:

Of course, we agree in principle. In fact it was Pakistan that first proposed that there should be cross-LoC linkages; that Kashmiris should be able to meet each other, trade with each other. It was the President of Pakistan who had said that we should make the Line of Control irrelevant for Kashmiris. In principle, we are in favour of increased contact across the Line of Control. At the moment, we want to focus on making the existing arrangements workable. We know that the Kashmiris have been complaining that because of the very cumbersome procedures for crossing, they are not able to avail of that facility. We would like to see easing of traveling procedures. We would like to see the arrangements that are already in place fully utilized.

Asked about the basic elements of Pakistan-China defence cooperation, the Spokesperson said:

We have ongoing cooperation with china in a number of fields, including defence. We also have some joint projects and joint research. Normally our agreements cover all these aspects. Sometimes these agreements are required to be renewed because they are for a specific period.

Asked about the ‘special commitments' Pakistan has made under the ‘unprecedented security plan' in exchange for getting the F-16s, the Spokesperson said:

A lot of these reports are speculative. What I can tell you is that the deal has been cleared by the Congress. The next step in the procedure is a formal letter of offer from the US side to Pakistan , and a formal letter of acceptance from our side. The technical discussions will start once we receive the letter of offer. This is the current status of the deal. I am not in a position to go into the specifics. DG ISPR or the Spokesperson for the PAF would be in a better position to confirm if any preliminary technical discussions have already taken place.

Asked to confirm reports that Pakistan was contributing troops to Lebanon , the Spokesperson said:

Pakistan has a long history of contributing troops to peacekeeping missions around the globe. Normally, we look for the fulfillment of two conditions; one, UN umbrella; two: acceptance of the mandate by all the parties involved in the conflict. In this particular case, we have not made a decision. We do have not the policy of participating in peace enforcement missions. In these matters our decisions are taken on the basis of ground realities. The reports in the media that Pakistan has decided to send or not to participate in the peacekeeping operation in Lebanon are all speculative stories. At the moment, there is no decision to take part in the peace keeping mission in Lebanon under Resolution 7201.

When her attention was drawn to a US Congressional Research Service's Report suggesting that in Pakistan militancy was on the rise, the Spokesperson said:

CRS is primarily a think-tank and it issues periodical reports. We do not agree with the findings or the conclusion that militancy is increasing in Pakistan . The government of Pakistan has taken a number of steps to check extremism in the country. We have banned militant organizations - organizations that were found to be involved in violence of all kinds i.e. sectarian, ethnic or any other kind.

Asked about the agenda of the forthcoming visit to Pakistan of King Abdullah of Jordan , the Spokesperson said:

The purpose of his visit is to exchange views on the situation in the Middle East .

Asked about the status of agreement between Pakistan and NATO and the nature of support to the NATO forces in Afghanistan , the Spokesperson said:

The NATO delegation is in town today to discuss the test of the understanding between Pakistan and NATO. This would cover the facilities that we would provide. I am sure you are aware of the understanding between Pakistan and ISAF that was put in place in the beginning of 2002 under which we provided logistic support to ISAF. This would be a similar arrangement. Basically, it would be logistical support. Since coalition forces are well entrenched in Afghanistan , they may require even less support from Pakistan .

Asked whether she subscribed to the media hypothesis that Pakistan 's policy vis-à-vis Afghanistan bred Anti-Pakistan feelings in Afghanistan , the Spokesperson said:

I do not agree with that. Every country adopts policies that it considers are in its national interest. This is what we are doing and this what other countries are doing. We believe that a stable, secure, strong and prosperous Afghanistan is in Pakistan 's interest. Our destinies are linked economically, ethnically, historically and religiously. We want to see a secure Afghanistan because economic linkages and revival of our historical linkages with Central Asia - all depends on the stability in Afghanistan . We are doing what we can to contribute to the stability and reconstruction in Afghanistan . Primarily we are acting in our national interest.

In response to a question whether Pakistan was having second-thoughts about recognizing Israel in view of the latter's aggression in Gaza and Lebanon , the Spokesperson said:

We have always said that progress towards Pakistan establishing diplomatic relations with Israel would depend on progress in the peace process - the establishment of a viable Palestinian state and a just solution of the Middle East question. This has been our policy. Our Foreign Minister met with the Foreign Minister of Israel in Turkey . And that again was in a specific context – Israel 's vacation of Gaza , and that was to demonstrate that as Israel moves towards a just solution of the Palestinian question, the willingness of the Muslim countries to engage with Israel , to recognize Israel would also increase.

When her comments were sought on a report issued by the Foreign Ministry of Australia that there could be an attack on foreign nationals, hotels and tour resorts in Pakistan , the Spokesperson said:

Perhaps Australia knows something that we do not know. We have no such information. We have checked with the Australian High Commission. They are apparently not aware of the advisory or not in a position to say anything on that. We would also try to confirm it from our High Commission in Australia .

Asked whether it was confirmed that Pakistani diplomats in India were not allowed to go outside the municipal limits of New Delhi without the prior permission of the Indian Government, as suggested by media reports, the Spokesperson said:

Yes, this was conveyed to our High Commission verbally but we have not received anything in writing from the Indian Government. The two countries have a regime which includes the requirement of advance notice and permission for traveling outside the capitals. This regime requires clarity, updating and improvement, and the process of consultations to do that has already started.

Asked, with reference to her response to the previous question, whether the Indian diplomats in Pakistan could leave the municipal limits of Islamabad without the prior permission of the Pakistani authorities, the Spokesperson said:

We are very liberal. The Indian diplomats go to Murree; they go to Rawalpindi , both of which are not part of the capital; they are in the Punjab province. As I said consultations are underway to improve the regime that we already have

Asked about an update on the Pakistani part of investigation into the London-terror plot, the Spokesperson said:

I am sorry, I am not in a position to add anything new to what we have already said. A lot has appeared in the media. There are continuing speculations.

I do understand your point of view. You need information; you want to write about it. However, the fundamental question here is would it serve anyone's interests if the investigations were compromised? The response is no - neither yours nor ours. It is in the larger interest of everyone that we get to the bottom of this plot and are able to ensure that no links remain unearthed and no link is missed. So at the moment, our Government and others are in the process of investigating and once we know that we have full picture, we will share it with you.

Asked to confirm the veracity of media reports that an Al Qaeda fugitive i.e. Matti-u-Rehman had been caught by the Pakistani agencies, the Spokesperson said:

It would be a very good news if it were true. As you know, he is wanted in connection with attempts on the lives of the President and Prime Minister. He is one of the most wanted people in Pakistan . We have been looking for him. We would have been very happy to have arrested him. But unfortunately this is not true.

Asked whether Pakistan had firm evidence that the Afghanistan-based Al Qaeda had masterminded the London terror plot, because Afghan Government has been repeatedly denying the claim and has said that Pakistan provides hospitable climate to Al-Qaeda, the Spokesperson said:

We have not and we are not accusing the Afghan Government of providing shelter to these people. Reports, however, suggest that Al Qaeda leaders and members are hiding in the border regions inside Afghanistan but no one knows their exact coordinates. Well Pakistan does not provide hospitable climate to Al Qaeda. A large number of Al Qaeda leaders and members have been arrested when they were fleeing Afghanistan . This is a fact that is widely known and widely acknowledged.