PAKISTAN WANTS TO FURTHER STRENGTHEN ECONOMIC AND TRADE TIES WITH AFGHANISTAN FOR WHICH THERE IS A GREAT POTENTIAL, PRIME MINISTER SHAUKAT AZIZ SAID FRIDAY. TALKING TO A MEDIA DELEGATION FROM AFGHANISTAN, AZIZ SAID PAKISTAN AND AFGHANISTAN HAVE A DEEP ROOTED RELATIONSHIP BASED ON SHARED HISTORY, CULTURE, COMMON FAITH AND ECONOMIC INTERDEPENDENCE, ACCORDING TO AN OFFICIAL STATEMENT. PAKISTAN HAS BEEN CONSISTENTLY SUPPORTING AFGHANISTAN IN ITS RECONSTRUCTION EFFORTS AS WELL AS TO ACHIEVE PEACE, STABILITY AND PROSPERITY AS A STRONG, STABLE AND VIBRANT AFGHANISTAN IS AS MUCH IN PAKISTAN'S INTEREST AS IT IS FOR THE AFGHANS, THE PRIME MINISTER SAID. HE ADDED THAT THE EVENTS IN AFGHANISTAN HAVE A SPILL OVER EFFECT ON PAKISTAN AND “WE WILL CONTINUE OUR SUPPORT FOR PEACE AND RECONSTRUCTION IN AFGHANISTAN IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN REGIONAL STABILITY.” AZIZ SAID PAKISTAN WAS PLAYING A STABILIZING ROLE IN A REGION FACING MANY CHALLENGES. IT HAS BEEN MOVING TOWARDS PROMOTING MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL ECONOMIC LINKAGES ACROSS THE REGION TO CREATE INTER-DEPENDENCIES AND WIN-WIN SITUATION FOR ALL. THE PRIME MINISTER SAID PAKISTAN WHICH IS LOCATED AT THE CONFLUENCE OF THREE VOLATILE YET VITAL REGIONS OF THE WORLD-SOUTH ASIA. CENTRAL ASIA AND WEST ASIA PROVIDES THE SHORTEST ACCESS TO THE SEA FOR ALL LANDLOCKED COUNTRIES OF CENTRAL ASIA, AFGHANISTAN AND WESTERN CHINA. THIS GEO-STRATEGIC LOCATION AND INTERNATIONAL COMPULSIONS HAVE REVITALIZED OUR ROLE FOR THE PROMOTION OF MULTI-SECTORAL INTRA-REGIONAL COOPERATION WHICH PROVIDES THE BASIS FOR PEACE AND PROSPERITY IN THE AREA, HE ADDED. AZIZ SAID THAT WHILE PAKISTAN HAS MAINTAINED FRIENDLY RELATIONS WITH KARAZAI GOVERNMENT IN AFGHANISTAN, AND PROVIDED DIPLOMATIC, POLITICAL AND FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO IT. “SOME ELEMENTS HAVE BEEN WORKING TO CREATE TENSION AND MISUNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES. THESE FORCES WANT TO DESTABILIZE AFGHANISTAN. THEY ARE ALSO USING THE MEDIA TO CREATE MISUNDERSTANDINGS BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES.” THE PRIME MINISTER SAID THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT AND PEOPLE SHOULD BE AWARE OF THIS AND WATCH AND COUNTER SUCH FORCES COLLECTIVELY WITH PAKISTAN. THE MEDIA CAN PLAY AN AFFECTIVE ROLE IN PROMOTING PEACE AND FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES, HE SAID. AZIZ SAID THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY NEEDS TO DO MORE TO SUPPORT AFGHANISTAN ERADICATE POPPY CULTIVATION THROUGH CROP SUBSTITUTION AND EMPLOYMENT GENERATION. HE SAID PAKISTAN IS AGAINST TERRORISM IN ALL ITS FORMS AND MANIFESTATIONS AND IS DETERMINED TO FIGHT AGAINST TERRORISM OUT OF CONVICTION AS IT IS IN OUR NATIONAL INTEREST. “TERRORISM KNOWS NO BORDERS. IT NEEDS TO BE UPROOTED THROUGH COLLECTIVE EFFORTS AND AT THE SAME TIME THE ROOT CAUSES OF TERRORISM MUST BE RESOLVED.” TALKING OF TRADE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES, HE NOTED WITH SATISFACTION THAT THE VOLUME OF TRADE BETWEEN PAKISTAN AND AFGHANISTAN HAS RISEN TO $ 1.5 BILLION IN A MATTER OF FEW YEARS. THIS, HE SAID, IS JUST A BEGINNING AS A VAST SCOPE FOR ITS EXPANSION EXISTS WHICH LIES UNTAPPED AND NEEDS TO BE LEVERAGED TO THE MUTUAL BENEFIT OF THE TWO COUNTRIES. AZIZ SAID THAT PAKISTAN ALSO WANTS THE ONGOING RECONSTRUCTION PROCESS IN AFGHANISTAN TO BE EXPEDITED AND EXPANDED AS IT WILL HAVE A SALUTARY IMPACT ON THE SITUATION IN AFGHANISTAN. ALSO THE IMPROVED ECONOMIC CONDITIONS IN AFGHANISTAN WILL ENCOURAGE VOLUNTARY REPATRIATION OF AFGHAN REFUGEES. PAKISTAN IS IN FAVOUR OF A GRADUAL AND SYSTEMATIC REPATRIATION OF THE OVER THREE MILLION AFGHAN REFUGEES STILL RESIDING IN PAKISTAN, HE SAID. --MORE 09/06/2006 14:54 ت م
