Kasuri highlights Pak role in promoting regional peace

MALTA—Foreign Minister Khurshid M. Kasuri Thursday highlighted Pakistan’s role in fighting terrorism and promoting regional peace and security in the South Asia. He made these remarks while addressing the Commonwealth Foreign Ministers meeting.
The meeting was held to review global developments and discuss major political issues. Participating in the debate, the Foreign Minister emphasized Pakistan’s role in eliminating extremism and terrorism in the region. He described terrorism as a common threat facing all the Commonwealth countries. On the domestic front he referred to the efforts of the government to eliminate extremism and militant elements and also underlined that Pakistan has apprehended suspected Al-Qaeda operatives.
He highlighted Pakistan’s agreement with 50 countries to curb terrorism. Dilating on the theme of promoting tolerance and respect, the Minister said it was important to evolve a long term strategy in this regard and emphasized the need for addressing the root causes of terrorism. He also highlighted President General Pervez Musharraf’s concept of Enlightened Moderation and explained the two prongs of the strategy that calls for a just resolution of disputes to eliminate terrorism. In the communique, which is likely to be issued by the Heads of Government Friday, there is a reference to the concept of enlightened moderation in the section on “promoting tolerance and respect”.
The Pakistani delegation to the Commonwealth Ministerial also played an active and positive role in finalizing the Draft Communique for the Heads of Government during the meetings of the Draft Committee which continued its first session late night Thursday. A number of proposals made by Pakistan facilitated the finalization of the draft and removal of differences among various countries. The Foreign Minister, in his presentation on the “Digital Divide” spoke about the importance of technology in economicdevelopment, especially information and communication technology. He also stated that the Digital Divide was of increasing concern for the developing countries. “Commonwealth countries include those who have developed expertise in the area and Pakistan is one of these countries.” He emphasized that these countries needed to share their expertise and develop linkages to promote I.T and build bridges of development and cooperation through networking and sharing of expertise.
The Foreign Minister also held bilateral meetings with the Foreign Ministers of Nigeria, Bangladesh, Ghana and Kenya. In these meetings, he discussed issues of mutual interest and especially the issues of UN Security Council Reform. The Foreign Minister of Nigeria is likely to visit Pakistan early next year.—APP.