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ROME: President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday called for access to markets of the European Union saying that it was key to helping Pakistan help itself.
He said this during a call on the Italian President Giorgio Napolitano in the Presidential palace in Rome.
'It is important that the European world takes into account the impact of militancy on a nation while considering access to market to it,' he said.
While briefing journalists about the meeting, Spokesperson to the President, Farhatullah Babar said that matters relating to increased cooperation with Italy in the areas of agriculture, edible oil, leather, export of semiskilled and unskilled manpower and technology for marble mining also came under discussion.
The president said that Pakistan looked forward to increased Pak-Italy cooperation in these areas.
The President also appreciated Italian assistance for the displaced people of Swat and Malakand and also for its gesture of swapping the official debt. President Zardari also appreciated Italy's support to Pakistan in the EU on the crucial issue of enhanced market access through the GSP plus scheme and the Free Trade Agreement.
Explaining the fight against militancy, President Zardari recounted the historical background of the how the extremists and militants were created decades ago.
He said that the militants were created as a result of a deliberate policy by the free world to employ religious fanaticism for the achievement of certain strategic objectives.
'A novel strategy was adopted that employed exploitation of religion to motivate Muslims around the world to wage jihad,' Zardari said.
The president said that the problem arose when the world abandoned Afghanistan in a hurry and no thought was given to its stability after the withdrawal of foreign forces and Pakistan was left alone to cope with the militants thus created.
The President also recalled the conversation Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto had with then American President George H.W Bush in 1989 in which she warned that in leaving Afghanistan in a hurry, a Frankenstein monster had been created that would come back to haunt the west.
President Zardari said that Pakistan paid the heaviest price of this policy as it ended up with nearly three million drug addicts, stunted economic activity and millions of Afghan refugees on its soil which it has been hosting for decades and is still hosting.
He said that the situation of Pakistan was further compounded when the international community gave material and moral support to dictatorships in Pakistan for its own ends.
The Italian President said that Pakistan was a very important country that deserved the attention of not only Italy but of the entire world.
He lauded the central role played by President Zardari and the democratic government in fighting the militants and said that Italy whole heartedly supported these efforts.
He said that Italy will continue to support democratic Pakistan in its endeavours to overcome the issues created by the fight against militancy. Link...