Islamabad, July 4
Denying any behind the scenes deals with the USA, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, on the last leg of his four-nation foreign tour, has said only a “traitor” could compromise on country’s nuclear weapons programme and the Kashmir issue.“Any one compromising on core interests of the country, nuclear power, missile programme and our international stance on Kashmir would be a traitor”, General Musharraf told a gathering of oversees Pakistanis in Paris yesterday. General Musharraf is currently in Paris on the last leg of his 20-day tour to the UK, the USA, Germany and France.
“This is our nuclear capability. Why would we transfer it to others?” President Musharraf said.
He said contrary to the allegations by Opposition parties, he had not struck any deal with the USA during his Camp David meeting with President George W Bush. His denial followed reports in the local media that Pakistan had agreed to freeze its nuclear programme during his US visit. The government here, too, denied the reports.
In his address to oversees Pakistanis in Paris, organised by pro-military politicians of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q), General Musharraf also referred to the militancy in Kashmir as freedom struggle.
“On the ‘so called cross border terrorism,’ an indigenous freedom struggle was underway in Jammu and Kashmir,” he was quoted as saying by media here.
He said he had explained to world leaders that “we are not involved in it and that whatever was happening in Kashmir were the doing of the local Kashmiri population who were fighting a war of liberation,” he claimed.
LONDON: Kashmir is the “lifeline” of Pakistan and it would not compromise on it, Pakistani premier Zafarullah Khan Jamali said on Friday. “As far as I am concerned, Kashmir is the lifeline. It’s not just a political issue; it’s an economic issue too. It’s lifeline as far as Pakistan is concerned and we have to keep that right in front of us and then decide,” Mr Jamali told the BBC World, in its programme ‘Question Time Pakistan.’
Stating that he would not compromise on principles, Mr Jamali said, “The major principle between India and Pakistan is Kashmir. That is the principle. On principle, you cannot compromise. On issues, you can.” He, however, did not elaborate.
Expressing his wish to improve relations with India, he said, “We have to improve. Why should I have a hostile neighbour? A country that is stronger than us, a country that is bigger than us. These are the facts and we have to admit.”
Replying to a question on New Delhi’s claim that Pakistan is not stopping “cross-border infiltration”, Mr Jamali said: “They’ve been saying it for years and years. Pakistan has vast borders and with all the military might India has put on those borders, even then they are saying that we are still crossing over. Doesn’t make sense at all,” he claimed.
At times, Mr Jamali claimed such instances happen without any connivance as far as Pakistan is concerned.
“We have said very openly that we do not have training camps, we do not send people across, we have nothing to do with the whole structure, but the moral help has been there with the Kashmiris. They have suffered a lot... India is very far ahead as far as the media is concerned so it tries to convince people they try to depict their point of view, which we have not been able to cover. We shall try to do that.”
— PTI
