President Asif Ali Zardari would present a comprehensive plan of rehabilitation of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in forthcoming summit meeting of Friends of Democratic Pakistan (FoDP) in New York and address UN General Assembly during his 15-day foreign visit.
In his address to the UN General Assembly, the President would elaborate on the steps taken to effectively deal with terrorism and militancy in the country especially with respect to the ongoing military operation in Swat and tribal areas, PPP party sources told Business Recorder.
According to sources, the President will also seek assistance from the international community for economic development as well as military technology, including drone technology, to more successfully wage the war against extremism and terrorism.
The FoDP meeting would be presided by President Zardari, President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Pakistan would present a 2 billion dollar proposal for funding by the FoDP for reconstruction and rehabilitation of Malakand affected people due to military operation against terrorists.
In the previous meeting of FoDP presided over by President Zardari, held in Tokyo in April 2009, as many as 20 donors had pledged 5.24 billion dollars. However, most of these pledges have not yet been materialised. During his stay in New York, the President would also meet with US President Obama and Turkish Prime Minister at the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meeting and the FoDP meeting, official sources said.
During talks with US President the President will reiterate his previous demands made during his visit a year ago when he had urged the US to extend economic aid, latest military equipment and technology, drone technology and night vision goggles for war against terrorism. These demands are likely to be reiterated, sources maintained.
The President will leave for UAE on September 16 for a two-week four-nation visit that would also take him to the US, the UAE, and Italy. From UAE, the President would leave for UK on September 17. During three-day stay in UK, he would hold talks with British authorities. It is expected that the President would also meet with his children in the UK where all three of his children are currently studying. The President will also meet MQM Quaid Altaf Hussain, an official source disclosed to the Business Recorder.
The President would arrive in New York on September 20. The Friends of Democratic Pakistan (FoDP) is scheduled for September 24. Several heads of states and governments, who are attending the United Nations General Assembly, are likely to attend the Friends of Democratic Pakistan Summit. The FoDP meeting will consider ways of bolstering the Pakistani economy and ensuring stability in the region. It is also likely to signal international support for continuity of the democratic process in Pakistan and emphasise the need for political stability.
Official sources said that President Zardari would return to UK on September 28 from where he would go to Italy. The sources said that the President would stay in Italy for three days and would hold talks with Italian Premier and his Italian counterpart to boost bilateral relations. He would return home on October 1.