President General Pervez Musharraf returned back to Pakistan Tuesday night after paying a four-day visit to Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan and described it as successful. He said the visit paved the way for improved economic and trade ties by consolidating the existing political relationship with the Central Asian states. 'I am satisfied with the outcome of the visit as it consolidated our political and diplomatic ties which will bolster our trade and economic cooperation to our mutual benefit', Musharraf told the accompanying media team on way back home at the end of a four-day visit. The president said the leaders of both countries have expressed a keen desire to gain trade access to world markets through Pakistani ports of Gawadar and Karachi. He envisioned a much greater economic cooperation between Pakistan and land-locked Central Asia. Geography makes it natural for them to have transit trade through Pakistan, he added. The government, Musharraf said, is fully conscious of the vital geo-strategic importance of Pakistan. 'We are fully focused on making use of our central location and constructing ports and putting in place a network of infrastructure', the president said. During the visit, Musharraf said, he highlighted that Pakistan and Central Asian states are bound in historical, cultural and traditional ties and they must expand their trade relations. --more 1330 Local Time 1030 GMT
