With a focus on Pakistan's role in Afghanistan, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle on Saturday appreciated Islamabad's role in war on terror but emphasised that reconciliation is the right approach for attaining lasting peace in Afghanistan.
"It is in our common interest to have stability in Afghanistan. We encourage Pakistan and Afghanistan close co-operation on the security issues and Germany as a friend will support Islamabad in this regard," said the Foreign Minister of Germany while addressing a joint press briefing with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, here in the Foreign Office. "The trade agreement signed last summer by both the neighbouring states is a remarkable step in the right direction," he added.
The Afghanistan-Pakistan transit trade agreement had come into effect from January 1, and it would allow India-bound Afghan cargo trucks to enter Pakistan via the border posts at Torkham on their way to Wagah. When asked to comment on German Chancellor Angela Markel's remarks that accused Pakistan of trying to solve political issues in the guise of terrorism, Guido Westerwelle shifted the onus on press saying, it was 'distortion and misrepresentation'.
Quoting German support to Pakistan's initiatives for providing greater EU market access to Pakistani export goods, he said that Germany will continue its engagement and co-operation with Pakistan and "you can rely on us". Mr Westerwelle arrived in Pakistan on two-day visit and is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. Earlier in the day, Westerwelle's plane landed in the eastern city of Lahore due to fog and poor visibility in the capital. He took four-hour trip to Islamabad by bus.
The two sides agreed to expand and strengthen their bilateral relations and co-operation in various fields including economy, education, defence, infrastructure and energy. Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that we believe in, and advocate, an indigenous, broad-based, all inclusive, Afghan-owned and Afghan-led process of reconciliation and reintegration. Pakistan is ready to facilitate the reconciliation and support, however it is up to them to determine what they want from us, he added.
Qureshi said we have discussed and are focusing focused on Strategic Dialogue between the two countries which said were decided by the leaders of two countries in the past. "We shared concept papers of German-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue," he added.
In defence field, Shah Mehmood Qureshi said Pakistan has urged Germany to liberalise export control policy towards Pakistan so that the country could get export licences for defence equipment to enhance its capacity in counter-terrorism. Qureshi thanked the German Foreign Minister for unprecedented contribution of German government and people for flood affected people adding that it was close to $300 million that included $210 million that came from ordinary Germans.
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