Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has said that a historic opportunity exists to resolve Kashmir issue in an acceptable manner for all concerned parties and emphasised the need for courage, magnanimity and flexibility for settlement of the decades-old dispute.
Addressing a gathering of academics and students at the Princeton University on Thursday evening, he said a stable conflict-free co-operative relationship between Pakistan and India holds the key to durable peace and prosperity in South Asia.
The Prime Minister said since the launch of Pakistan-India peace process in 2004 there has been improved atmosphere and increased people-to-people contacts "but we must now move towards dispute resolution".
"We must address the malaise and not just the symptoms. We believe that a historical opportunity exists to resolve the Kashmir dispute in a manner acceptable to Pakistan and India and most importantly to the people of Kashmir," he stressed.
Kashmir is the core issue between the two South Asian countries, he later told students during the question answer session and underlined that there is a need for "courage, magnanimity and flexibility" from all sides to bring a solution.
He said Pakistan has proposed ideas of demilitarisation, self-governance and joint management.
"We believe Kashmiris have suffered and their cause must be heard," he stated. In his wide-ranging address, Prime Minister Aziz spoke about Pakistan's vital strategic importance and spelt out the country's position on major regional and international issues and its efforts to sustain a high economic growth befitting its enormous potential.
"In our external relations we are striving for a peaceful environment in our region, first and foremost in the interest of our own development and for raising the living standards of our people."
Pakistan, he said, is critical for security and stability of the adjoining region that encompass Central Asia, South Asia and West Asia in particular the Gulf.
He dwelt on Pakistan's vital location to serve as trade and energy corridor for the regions and informed the gathering that Pakistan provides the shortest access to the sea for landlocked countries of Central Asia as well as Western China. He added Pakistan is developing a third port at Gwadar to facilitate regional linkages.
In the context of Pakistan-US ties, he said, "today the relations between the two countries are pivotal-both regionally and globally." "These relations are now on an upward trajectory and we have put in place the elements of a robust and broad-based strategic partnership."
The Prime Minister said co-operation between Pakistan and the US is essential for peace and development in the world as well as in the region.
"We are involved in a joint struggle against extremism and terrorism, we are committed to forging a better understanding between Islam and the West, we have a shared interest in addressing proliferation concerns, we are co-operating to promote peace and security in South Asia, we have a shared interest in a peaceful stable and prosperous Afghanistan, we both seek development and prosperity in Central Asia and we recognise the urgent need for peace in West Asia and the Middle East."
There are, however, several challenges that threaten to destabilise the international system, undermine peace and retard development, he noted.
"Pakistan and the US must work together with other like-minded states to address these interrelated challenges."
"Most importantly, we must devise an effective strategy to overcome the threat posed by international terrorism, which has multiplied into a myriad of problems."
The Prime Minister said it is crucial to address the root causes of terrorism arising from deprivation, injustice and denial of freedom in the shape of longstanding conflicts afflicting the Islamic world, such as in Palestine, Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan and Kashmir, which have caused anger and frustration among people.
He called for rejecting the false notion of a linkage between terrorism and Islam, saying terrorism knows no borders or religion.
He suggested an effective strategy combining three broad aspects to deal with interrelated threats: First there should be launching of a political process with the overarching aim of resolving the root causes of the conflict solutions. This would involve engagement with all stakeholders. The process should also involve the United Nations to a much greater extent. Most importantly, it would be necessary to provide a voice to all the concerned people by ensuring their political participation and ownership.
Secondly, he called for much greater focus on economic support and incentives by devising a new version of the Marshal Plan aimed at ensuring reconstruction and rebuilding, developing the infrastructure and creating absorptive capacities.
Thirdly, he said, there is a need for building bridges and winning hearts and minds of the people. "This would involve generating hope and promoting interfaith harmony as well as inter-civilisational and inter-cultural dialogue."
Speaking about Pakistan's economic turnaround, he said the national economy is now on an upward growth trajectory, with the growth rates being of the highest in Asia. Exports and foreign direct investment have reached new levels.
Earlier, President of Princeton University, Shirley Tilghman, hailed Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, saying he has demonstrated remarkable qualities in improving economy of Pakistan.
Earlier on Thursday, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said that the purpose of the sweeping reforms of the United Nation system proposed by the high-level panel was to promote efficiency and co-ordination at the country level, and not to cut jobs.
"No body is looking to reduce jobs; our recommendation are aimed at bringing about system-wide coherence to ensure effective delivery of aid so that it touches the hearts and minds of the peoples of the world," he told a press conference after presenting the 15-member panel's report to secretary general Kofi Annan and to the UN General Assembly.
The Pakistani leader was responding to a correspondent's question that the radical measures proposed by the panel might result in reduction of jobs and might face resistance. Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Soltenberg was also present at the press conference.
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said the money saved from the overlapping UN programmes through better co-ordination could be used to increase the aid.
The UN could save up to 20 percent per year of its current costs system-wide through eliminating duplication and consolidating certain funds and programmes, Co-Chair of the High-level Panel on UN System wide Coherence, he said.
At the core of the panel's proposals was the idea of creating "One UN" country programmes, which would co-ordinate the Organisation's work in each nation, replacing the current fragmented approach to such initiatives.
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