MULTAN Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said that Pakistan does not want to indulge in arms race in the region but is fully alive to its defence.
Talking to newsmen at the local airport on Saturday, he said that he has confidence in Pakistans defence capabilities, adding that there exists nuclear balance in the region.
Foreign Minister said that the country enjoys complete national cohesion and consensus.
To a question on US-India nuclear deal, he said that the two countries are sovereign and can have relations on the basis of mutual interests. On the other hand, he added, Pakistan has a 60-year long relationship with the US and that the US secretary of state took Pakistan in confidence and briefed the ministry on her New Dehli visit.
Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi welcomed the statement of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the Lok Sabha as a positive development that declared dialogue as the only way forward. It matches Pakistans point of view and our federal cabinet has also issued a statement in his support, he stated.
He said that he is expected to meet his Indian counterpart on the sidelines of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session in September this year in New York.
To a question on the Kashmir issue, the minister that Kashmir is a priority of the government and a cornerstone of Pakistans foreign policy. It is one of the eight segments of the composite dialogue and the whole world recognises it as an issue that needs to be resolved, he said.
When asked about Indian involvement in Balochistan, he said that it is a sensitive issue and diplomatic channels would be in a better position to address the question, adding that issuing media statements on this sensitive issue will not benefit either of the two countries.
He said that dialogue should be preferred to resolve problems and bring about socio-economic development in the two countries that would give employment opportunities to the people.
He said that talks between Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani and his Indian counterpart at Sharm Al-Sheikh was a positive development, and according to the joint statement foreign secretaries of the two countries have the liberty to meet any time when required. -APP
