Easy access to ports: government ready to offer all help to Tajikistan, says Zardari

President Asif Ali Zardari has said that Pakistan was ready to offer all assistance to Tajikistan to provide easy access to the ports in Pakistan, especially the Gwadar Port.
In this context, he said, we are ready to discuss the conclusion of a Trilateral Transit Trade Agreement between Pakistan, Tajikistan and Afghanistan. Addressing a banquet held at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Monday in the honour of President Emomali Rahmon, the President said that Pakistan was ready to discuss frameworks that would facilitate trade and economic relations between Pakistan and Tajikistan. We are keen to create an interface between the private sectors of the two countries, the President said.
The President said that Pakistan-Tajikistan relations were rooted in the centuries old bonds of history, faith, culture and traditions and it was a matter of great satisfaction that the relationship was strengthening with each passing day. The mutual feelings of friendship trust and confidence is reassuring, he said.
Highlighting the shared objectives and aspirations of the two countries, the President noted that the two countries were determined to work closely to strengthen whole range of bilateral relations. He said that Pakistan and Tajikistan were determined to work together to promote stability, peace and development in the region.
The President said that the foundation of the relationship was laid by Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto nearly 17-year ago when she had sent him as a special envoy of Pakistan to Tajikistan. The President said that Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto had a vision of promoting regional trade and connectivity. He said that it was her vision to focus on regional trade and enhancing connectivity that many other countries have taken benefit. He said that had those policies been continued, we would have been at much better position today and had not faced many problems such as the present energy crisis.
The President also emphasised that the people, intelligentsia, civil society, business community and media step forward and take ownership of the policies for the sake of ensuring their continuity. The President said that the present government was picking up the threads to enhance and further strengthen Pak-Tajik relations and pursuing the policies that would promote regional trade, more collaborations to meet the challenges facing the region and bringing in socio-economic development.
Appreciating close partnership of the two countries within the frameworks of Shanghai Co-operation Organisation, Economic Cooperation Organisation, Organisation of the Islamic Conference and the United Nations, the President said that we would continue to strive to strengthen our partnership with Tajikistan.
He said that it was a matter of great satisfaction that the two countries share a vision of regional development and connectivity. CASA-1000 project aimed at providing 1000 megawatts of electricity to Pakistan through Afghanistan was a concrete step for the realisation of such vision, he said.
The President said that Pakistan was keenly interested in enhancing air and road links to Tajikistan and it looks forward to developing rail link with Tajikistan, in the future. He said that our region faces challenges of extremism, terrorism, narcotics and organised crime and we have to work closely to overcome these challenges in order to promote peace and stability in our region.
Talking about regional situation, the President reiterated that Pakistan will extend all assistance to Afghan brothers in their quest for peace and prosperity, based on the time tested principles enshrined in the UN Charter. The President also thanked the government and people of Tajikistan for their generous humanitarian assistance for flood victims in Pakistan last year. The President hoped that the visit of Tajik President to Pakistan will become a new milestone in the brotherly relations between the two countries.-PR