Pakistan considers 'stability in Afghanistan as vital to its own stability and was looking forward towards continued cooperation with the new Karzai government' in Kabul.
Pakistan wants the resumption of the stalled composite dialogue with India and the US and the international community should help in reviving the peace process, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said today.
Gilani reaffirmed his government's resolve to seek the resolution of all issues with India, "particularly the fostering dispute of Kashmir and water issues", through the resumption of the composite dialogue. He hoped the US and the international community "would play their role in this regard to bring lasting peace to South Asia".
Gilani made these remarks during a meeting with a visiting US Congressional delegation led by John Tierney. The premier also said the US "must take Pakistan into confidence on the review of its policy on Afghanistan".
The US should ensure that its intended military build-up in Afghanistan did not have an effect on Balochistan and other parts of Pakistan, he added. The US and international forces should "fully coordinate and improve" intelligence-sharing with Pakistan to boost the operation against militants on both sides of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, he said.
Pakistan considers "stability in Afghanistan as vital to its own stability and was looking forward towards continued cooperation with the new Karzai government" in Kabul, Gilani said. It is "crucially important to sanitise the Pakistan-Afghanistan border to prevent the flow of weapons, drugs, illicit money and militants," he said.
Gilani also reiterated his demand that the US should immediately supply "much-needed equipment" for building the capacity of Pakistan's security forces so that the anti-militancy operations can be taken to their logical conclusion.
Tierney and the other members of the delegation assured Gilani that they would fully support the provision of aid to Pakistan in areas like education, healthcare and capacity building of its armed forces and law enforcement agencies.
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