ISLAMABAD, Dec 6: Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith expressed concerns on Saturday over the mounting tension between India and Pakistan and urged the two countries to maintain good relations.

In a phone call to Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, he praised Pakistani leadership for adopting a constructive approach in the wake of the Mumbai attacks and trying to defuse tensions.

Mr Smith is reported to have told Mr Qureshi that Australia had particularly noted that Pakistan had offered joint investigative mechanism to India to apprehend the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks and called for a thorough probe into the matter.

There are growing concerns about the activities of the banned Lashkar-i-Taiba in Australia. Some Australians place the defunct group on a par with Al Qaeda in subversive activities. The sources said that Mr Smith sought Pakistan’s help for dealing with the threat posed by the group.

Mr Qureshi praised the Australian assistance programme for social and economic development, under which about $30.5 million would be provided to Pakistan in 2008-09.

ITALY: Ambassador Iannucci, head of Asia, Oceania and Pacific in the Italian foreign ministry, held bilateral talks with Additional Secretary (Europe) Akbar Zeb as a follow-up to Italian foreign minister’s recent visit to Islamabad and the meeting between the prime ministers of Italy and Pakistan in Beijing on the sidelines of the ASEM Summit in October.

Opinion

Editorial

A hasty retreat
Updated 28 Nov, 2024

A hasty retreat

Govt should not extend its campaign of violence against PTI and its leaders, thinking it now has the upper hand. Enough is enough.
Lebanon truce
28 Nov, 2024

Lebanon truce

WILL it hold? That is the question many in the Middle East and beyond will be asking after a 60-day ceasefire ...
MDR anomaly removed
28 Nov, 2024

MDR anomaly removed

THE State Bank’s decision to remove its minimum deposit rate requirement for conventional banks on deposits from...
Islamabad march
Updated 27 Nov, 2024

Islamabad march

WITH emotions running high, chaos closes in. As these words were being written, rumours and speculation were all...
Policing the internet
27 Nov, 2024

Policing the internet

IT is chilling to witness how Pakistan — a nation that embraced the freedoms of modern democracy, and the tech ...
Correcting sports priorities
27 Nov, 2024

Correcting sports priorities

IT has been a lingering battle that has cast a shadow over sports in Pakistan: who are the national sports...