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Spokesperson Briefings

Date: 06/06/2006

RECORD OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESSED BY THE FOREIGN OFFICE SPOKESPERSON ON 06 JUNE 2006

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

QUESTION/ANSWER SESSION

- When asked about the visit of President General Pervez Musharraf to China to participate in Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit and whether he would discuss purchase of additional nuclear power plant from China, the Spokesperson said:

President Pervez Musharraf would attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in Shahghai. He will discuss the whole range of bilateral relations. As for your specific query, I am not aware of any likely discussions on this subject.

- Asked, whether Pakistan had been able to find premises for its Consulate in Mumbai, the spokesperson said:

No, we have unfortunately not been able to find any suitable property. You may have seen reports in the Indian media about two or three locations that were recommended by the Indian Government. Two of them were absolutely not suitable from our point of view. So far there is no progress on that front.

- Asked, how would you comment on the statement of President of Pakistan Muslim League Ch. Shujaat Hussain about the slow pace of composite dialogue process between India and Pakistan, the spokesperson said:

As a matter of policy we don't comment on the statements of political leaders. I don't know exactly what he has said, but we are disappointed with the slow pace of forward movement of the composite dialogue process. The process has not broken down, it is continuing, but we would like to see progress, especially because we have put in place a number of confidence building measures between the two countries. We have been able to create conducive environment and the international environment is also supportive. We certainly need to move beyond the confidence building phase to addressing the disputes for their resolution specially the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.

- When asked to comment on the state of Pak-Afghan relations, the spokesperson said:

We have repeatedly said that relations between the people of two countries are such that nothing can affect these ties. We are connected ethnically, religiously, culturally and these are very strong bonds. There are some minor irritants and it is our effort to resolve them amicably through dialogue. The Tripartite Commission meeting, which took place in Rawalpindi today, discussed all the issues related to war against terrorism. This time the meeting was also attended by NATO as a member of the Commission alongwith the US, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

- When her attention was drawn to the US State Department report on human trafficking, the spokesperson said:

Human trafficking is a serious issue. This is not an issue that is specific to Pakistan, it is a universal problem, including in the countries like the United States. We, because of our geographical location, sometimes become a transit point for the traffickers and our government has taken very strong action against human traffickers. A lot has been done and a lot more needs to be done. We would like to see zero human trafficking through Pakistan, which is an ideal situation and certainly we would like to see zero human trafficking and exploitation throughout the world.

- When her attention was drawn to reported arrest of Pakistani fishermen by Indian authorities, the spokesperson said:

We will have to confirm the reports. This is not an unusual happening. Fishermen are arrested sometimes within our own exclusive Economic Zone. This is an issue which the two countries are already discussing. We also signed an agreement on the need for early release of these fishermen and resultantly a large number of fishermen are being set free by both sides.

- To a question with regard to Pakistan becoming ASEAN' full dialogue partner, the spokesperson said:

We are engaged with ASEAN and our engagement is very robust. We have been making efforts to enhance our economic relations with ASEAN association and ASEAN member countries. A number of projects are already underway. ASEAN did not discuss the question of expansion during its last meeting. But certainly we are very mindful of this factor and also we are very much keen that whenever the expansion takes place Pakistan will be taken on board.

- When her comments were sought on reported arrests and killings of “Pakistani militants' in IHK, the spokesperson said:

Well, if all those who are killed in India or in IOK were Pakistanis, our population would have shrunk significantly. We always see claims that so many Pakistanis have been arrested or killed. But when we approach Indian authorities for consular access we never hear from them. It is obligatory to provide consular access on request. It is important to ascertain the nationality of those taken into custody. Neither in the case of arrest nor in case of death, we have ever heard any confirmation from the Indian side about their nationality as Pakistanis. But if you go by the Indian media, a number of Pakistanis are reported either arrested or killed almost everyday.

- When asked to comment on reports of postponement of Indian Prime Minister's visit to Pakistan, the spokesperson said:

There is no question of postponement as the visit was never scheduled. There were no confirmed dates. The invitation had been extended to the Indian Prime Minister which he had accepted. In a subsequent meeting between the two Prime Ministers, our Prime Minister reiterated the invitation to which Dr. Singh again responded positively. It was the Indian media that started speculations that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would be visiting Pakistan in June/July. The present position is that the invitation is there, it has been accepted by him. Now it is for the Indian Government to indicate the time frame for the Prime Minister's visit to Pakistan.

- When her attention was drawn to report on dispatch of a Pakistani team to Guantanamo Bay to meet Pakistani detainees and arrange their repatriation, the spokesperson said:

We approached the United States for confirmation of how many Pakistanis were held at Guantanamo Bay and for consular access, to establish their national status. The Americans have indicated their willingness to organize the visit of a Pakistani team, which our Ministry of Interior is in the process of putting together. We have been told by the US that there are six people at Guantanamo Bay, who they think are Pakistanis.

- When asked about the likely visit of a Pakistani delegation to Washington to discuss energy issue and also about the visit of Pakistani delegation to Palestine, the spokesperson said:

Energy talks are likely to take place either at the end of this month or early next month. Some dates have been proposed from both sides and they are trying to work out an agreed set of dates. About the visit to Palestine, it is not taking place at the moment. The idea has not been dropped, that is very much there. The Palestinian side would indicate the dates. There has been financial crunch and there are other internal issues as well which need to be resolved.

- When her comments were sought on reported statements by Indian National Security Advisor blaming Pakistan for cross border terrorism and infiltration, the spokesperson said:

First of all, we have made our position on the question of terrorism, cross-LoC infiltration and the so called cross border terrorism very clear. We are against terrorism, we condemn terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, whether it is perpetrated by States or individuals or groups. We are ourselves a victim of terrorism. We have repeatedly asked India that if there is any evidence of any Pakistani organization or individual being involved in a terrorist act in India or in IOK, they should share information with us. We will cooperate. We have never received any feed-back and in the absence of evidence, these remain baseless allegations. Secondly, I would like to draw your attention to the contradictory statements emanating from India.

- Asked whether Pakistan was selling military hardware for US operation in Iraq, the spokesperson said:

We are not aware of any such sale to the US. But we have trained the Iraqi diplomats in Pakistan and we would be willing to offer training to Iraqi officials, civil servants and military so that they are able to take control of the situation in Iraq at the earliest.

- Asked what specific measures had been taken to train the Iraqis, the spokesperson said:

I said that Iraqis should be able to take charge of their country as soon as possible. You would recall the statements by the President of Pakistan that instead of sending foreign troops to Iraq, we should enable the Iraqis to control the law and order situation in their country. We have been providing training to Iraqi diplomats and other officials and we can look at the possibility of training Iraqi military officials.

- Asked whether any Pakistanis were also included among the people arrested in Canada recently, the spokesperson said: