Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi held meetings with Foreign Ministers of Germany and Iran on the sidelines of the 63rd session of the UN General Assembly in New York. According to a message received from New York, in his meeting with the German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Foreign Minister Qureshi stressed that the fight against the extremists was a global challenge.
The world must, therefore, take ownership of this fight by standing alongside with Pakistan. Pakistan, he observed, was engaged in implementing a comprehensive strategy to fight terrorism and extremism that included dialogue and economic development, in addition to use of force. He underlined the need for providing support to the democratically elected government of Pakistan so that it can deliver. Germany was an important trading partner of Pakistan and he looked forward to Germany's participation in the Friends of Pakistan meeting.
The German Foreign Minister assured support to Pakistan in the current time of crisis. In his meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Manoucheher Mottaki, Foreign Minister Qureshi expressed satisfaction over the outcomes of the meeting between President Zardari and President Ahmedinejad. He hoped that the results of the summit meeting would be further concretised during the forthcoming visit of Foreign Minister Mottaki to Pakistan.
The decision to go ahead with the gas pipeline bilaterally would in particular give impetus to the economic relations between the two countries. Foreign Minister Qureshi underscored the need for exploring all possible avenues for strengthening bilateral relations between the two brotherly nations. The Iranian Foreign Minister condemned the terrorist bombing of the Marriott Hotel.
He underlined the importance of co-operation to prevent the spread of extremism in the region. He said that there was a lot of scope for co-operation in the economic realm and agreed that the decision on the gas pipeline project was an important development. He also emphasised the importance of regional co-operation and felt that the Economic Co-operation Organisation summit, to be hosted by Pakistan, would provide a good opportunity for strengthening this.