President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday invited Belgian businessmen to come to Pakistan and explore a market that boasts of over 170 million people. Addressing leading Belgian businessmen at a dinner meeting, the President said just like Belgium, which is gateway to Europe, Pakistan was a gateway to the Central Asian states. "Lets take advantage of each other''s markets," he added.
The President said on one side of Pakistan was the burgeoning market of China, having a population of over one billion while on the other side, there was India, which too had a market of over one billion people. He said Pakistan offered a cordial business atmosphere and with its strategic geographical location, businessmen from around the world could get closer to Chinese and Indian ports through Pakistan.
He said Pakistan, since its creation had been an ally of Europe and the US, but the business relations with them had not developed to the full potential. President Zardari said Pakistan had all the natural resources, which needed to be exploited.
Speaking about the security situation, he said it was in Pakistan''s own interest to have peace and security. He said Islam was a religion of peace and love, but certain elements had misquoted some particular teachings of this great religion for their own vested interests.
He said Islam never spread through the use of force. It was the true message of love and peace that spread as far as the shores of Spain. President Zardari, who attended the first ever Pakistan-EU summit earlier in the morning, underlined the importance of democracy and dialogue for solving every problem. He said his Shaheed wife Benazir Bhutto travelled around the world, carrying the message of democracy and dialogue.
He said a dictator was removed in Pakistan through dialogue and it was the dialogue, which helped him secure his release from the prison. He expressed the hope that, with the support of the European Union, democracy would flourish in Pakistan.
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