Canada will suggest Pakistan, alternatives to mining its border with Afghanistan, in the light of political and technical requisites, Canadian Deputy High Commissioner Stuart Hughes said on Thursday.
"It (proposals) is going to be a mix of political and technical stuff, a combination of things so as to make the idea of landmines redundant," the Canadian diplomat said at a seminar on '1997-2007: Ten years of Mine Ban Treaty, A success in progress', organised by Sustainable Peace and Development Organisation (Spado) here.
Stuart Hughes said a Canadian inter-agency team in its recent visit to Pakistan had held meetings with the officials of relevant agencies, and visited Chaman border and refugee camps. It would send proposals in the light of region's specific requirements.
He said Canada never supported nuclear weapons and also considered anti-personnel mines as a global problem.
He mentioned the instrumental role of Canadian civil society and the government in achieving Ottawa Convention to ban landmines, their production and transfer, to which 40 countries had ratified by September 1998.
Regarding the current presence of Canadian troops in Afghanistan and in Pakistan during earthquake, the Deputy High Commissioner rejected any ulterior motives and said it was for the humanitarian cause. "We have no imperial ambitions in Afghanistan and Pakistan, rather our presence has been for humanitarian purpose."
He said in Pakistan, about 200 Canadian troops in the aftermath of earthquake contributed to relief work including provision of clean drinking water, setting up of filtration plants and field hospitals.
Similarly in Afghanistan, he said Canada through its troops wanted the Afghan people to maintain an atmosphere conducive to attain sustainable economic development.
Senator Akram Zaki, Pakistan's former ambassador to United States termed anti-personnel mines as "indiscriminate killers" that do not discriminate between a combatant and a non-combatant, child or adult, in times of war or during peace, and after the wars are long over.
Comments
Comments are closed.