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Spokesperson Briefings

Date: 19/09/2006

RECORD OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESSED BY THE FOREIGN OFFICE SPOKESPERSON ON 19 SEPTEMBER 2006

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

QUESTION/ANSWER SESSION

In response to a few questions about the lately held Summit Meeting between President Musharraf and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at Havana, and whether there was anything new and striking in the agreement, the spokesperson said:

The leaders of Pakistan and India at their meeting in Havana decided that the two Foreign Secretaries would meet shortly. Depending on the convenience of the two sides, the meeting will be convened at an earlier date. This will be the review meeting that was postponed by India.

This is not the question of something new. There was a hiccup in the peace process but now the peace process has been fully restored. The leaders of the two countries have reaffirmed their commitment to the peace process, and they have said that it is in the interest of both countries. They have talked about a mutually acceptable solution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in sincere and purposeful manner. They have talked about narrowing down differences and divergences and building on convergences. They have directed the two Foreign Secretaries to meet at the earliest. They have also talked about settling the Siachin and Sir Creek issues. Besides they have agreed to put in place an institutional mechanism to deal with the problem of terrorism. These are all positive developments. We hope that the two sides can build on them.

Asked how the joint institutional mechanism for terrorism would work and whether it would involve intelligence sharing as well, the spokesperson said:

The purpose of the institutional mechanism is to help prevent acts of terrorism in the two countries. If there is some information that one country wants to convey to the other, this mechanism can be used. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Ministry of Interior in Pakistan and their Indian counterparts can be the channel of this mechanism. Pakistan has such mechanisms with a number of countries, and these are working very well. We hope that whatever is shaped is very useful for both these countries as well.

The Joint Statement says that India and Pakistan have decided to put in place anti-terrorism institutional mechanism to identify and implement counter-terrorism initiatives and investigations. It does not talk about anything specifics. It would depend on how the two sides would like it to work it; what kind of information they would like to share with each other and what kind of assistance they would want from each other.

Asked whether the Pakistan-India Joint Statement at Havana did not imply that Pakistan had deviated from the UN Security Council resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir especially because the Indian Prime Minister has again said that the borders cannot be redrawn and that India has not shown any flexibility, the spokesperson said:

I do not know how you have presumed that Pakistan has moved away from its position. The Joint Statement says that the leaders decided to continue the joint search for mutually acceptable options for a peaceful, negotiated settlement of all issues between India and Pakistan, including the issue of Jammu and Kashmir in a sincere and purposeful manner. On the Jammu and Kashmir issue there has been useful discussions. There is a need to build on convergences and narrow down divergences.

I do not think this statement in any way implies that there is a change in our position. We have repeatedly said that Line of Control and the status quo is not a solution. We are not talking about a piece of territory here; we are talking about the destiny of Kashmiris. Naturally a mutually acceptable solution to Pakistan and India has to be acceptable to the people of Kashmir as well. We always talk about the aspirations of the people of Kashmir, how do you think we have moved from our position?

Secondly, the President has talked about making the Line of Control irrelevant. There are ideas. We want to see it as a win-win situation in which Kashmiris are happy and which is acceptable to Pakistan and India.

When her comments were sought on the statement by the Indian Prime Minister that Pakistan was still retaining some infrastructure of terrorism, the spokesperson said:

These are unsubstantiated allegations. India has not given any evidence and in the absence of any evidence to substantiate them, they remain baseless allegations. If India has any information it can share it with Pakistan.

Asked about the agenda of the scheduled meeting between President Musharraf and President Bush, the spokesperson said:

We have already issued a statement. The US State Department has issued a statement as well. In this meeting the two Presidents will review the whole gamut of bilateral relations. When President Bush came to Pakistan, the two countries decided to launch a strategic dialogue, which has many components and a number of Working Groups were established under this process. They have done a lot of work. The two leaders will review the progress. They will naturally talk about every aspect of bilateral relations. They will also discuss the regional situation, Pakistan-India peace process, the situation in Afghanistan, the Middle-East and other global issues.

Asked, with reference to President Musharraf's reported statement that he would discuss the ‘women protection bill' with the US President as well, why a purely domestic issue would be taken up with a foreign leader, the spokesperson said:

Of course it is Pakistan's domestic issue, but there is a lot of interest. The government's agenda is to build what the people of Pakistan want to see - a moderate, prosperous and democratic society, a society where everyone has equal rights, and a society where there is no injustice; these are universal ideals. It is in that context if there is some positive development inside Pakistan, we would like to tell the world about it. It is not that we are seeking anyone's approval or permission to do something. It is a positive development and the President would like to talk about that.

Asked why the President has asked the Governor of NWFP to suddenly visit the US has been called to brief the US leaders on the agreement in North Waziristan, the spokesperson said:

I do not know whether it was already planned or it is ‘sudden'. A lot of interest has been evinced in the agreement in North Waziristan. This agreement has been welcomed by the governments of Afghanistan, Britain and by the US Administration. The Governor was the one who negotiated it with the tribal elders.

We are also discussing the Reconstruction Opportunity Zones concept with the US. Since this involves mainly the tribal areas, it is quite possible that there may be some discussions in that context.

Asked whether Pakistan could prove instrumental in brokering a deal between the Afghan government and the Taliban after the North Waziristan deal between the NWFP Government and the tribal elders, the spokesperson said:

It is not for Pakistan to advise the Afghan Government on how to negotiate and with whom to negotiate. It is up to them to do that. It would have to be their own decision. However, it is a model, if it works successfully, they may like to work on similar lines inside Afghanistan. However, it is purely up to them.

Asked whether Pakistan would field its own candidate for the post of UN Secretary General or it would support one of the current candidates in the run, the spokesperson said:

We do not have a decision at the moment whether we are going to field a candidate or not. In the last two weeks some new candidates have emerged and there is no deadline. There was a straw poll on 14 September and the next will be held at the end of September. So the field is still wide open. There are new candidates.

In response to a question about Pope Benedict's remarks about Islam, the spokesperson said:

The remarks, although explained by way of a quotation from a medieval emperor's remarks, undoubtedly demonstrated insensitivity to the sentiments of 1.3 billion Muslims around the world. Such remarks are not expected from someone who is head of the Vatican. We have also noted the expression of regret. In Pakistan, the Senate and the National Assembly have adopted resolutions. These resolutions express the sentiments of the people of Pakistan. You would have also seen the statement made by our Permanent Representatives in Geneva on behalf of the Muslim countries as coordinator for the OIC. We as Muslims believe in respecting all religions and faiths, and we expect the same from others. In today's environment, it is extremely important that we make efforts to build bridges and understanding between faiths.

When her comments were sought on the statement of the Australian Foreign Minister while visiting Afghanistan that Taliban had a support-base in Pakistan, the spokesperson said:

We reject the statement. It is baseless. We have always said that the international community needs to strengthen its presence in Afghanistan, not just militarily but also economically. More work is required to build institutions in Afghanistan and to rebuild the destroyed infrastructure. The Australians have just joined the ISAF. They have hardly been there. The situation in Afghanistan is difficult. We all have seen the Taliban resistance and violence that has ensued. Some of the countries have sent troops to Afghanistan despite strong opposition domestically. As for Australia joining the ISAF, it was their decision. They need to take the responsibility for that. They should not look for scapegoats to take blame.

Asked about the status of the F-16 deal with the U.S, and whether the inclusion of an additional clause would not be detrimental to Pakistan's interests and what are the contents of the letter of acceptance, the spokesperson said:

The sale of F-16s has been cleared. Our Air Force people are working on the letter of acceptance.

I cannot discuss the contents of the letter of acceptance. This is between the two governments. As for the concerns on the transfer of technology to a third country, that is a legitimate concern of every country that is selling weapon systems. When Pakistan sells weapons to another country we also require assurances and these are contained in the agreement that there will be no transfer of technology without our permission. There are also other similar clauses to ensure that the technology that you are providing to a country is secure; it does not wittingly or unwittingly land in a third country. Naturally the US would have similar concerns.