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Concrete evidence must for Hafiz trial: Gilani
Krishna ‘sceptical’ about outcome of Indo-Pak meeting
Qureshi to meet Krishna with ‘positive approach’
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Summit on Climate Change
9/11 attack a victory, says ‘mastermind’
Pak seeks promised financial aid
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Concrete evidence must for Hafiz trial: Gilani
Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has said that Pakistan wants good relations with neighbouring countries, including India, on the basis of equality but rejected the demand for trial of Jamiat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed in the absence of concrete evidence.
Addressing a big gathering in Multan, the premier said that Pakistan wished to resolve water and Kashmir disputes with India through negotiations on the table. The two nuclear powers should decide to move forward and focus on the well-being of their poverty ridden people adding that it would pave the way for a socio-economic revolution in the region, he said. On the trial of Saeed, Gilani said India had so far failed to provide enough evidence of his involvement in Mumbai attacks. The dossiers so far handed over to Pakistan only mention Saeed's involvement with sketchy evidence and in generalised terms. Gilani repudiated whispering campaign about mid-term elections and said the present government has popular mandate to rule for five years and would complete its term.
Krishna ‘sceptical’ about outcome of Indo-Pak meeting
New York, September 23 Ahead of his meeting with Qureshi on September 27, Krishna said he was “sceptical” about its outcome, maintaining that only “sincerity and seriousness” on the part of Pakistan would provide a “sound backdrop” for a meaningful dialogue. He said unless Pakistan government shows “seriousness and sincerity” in going after the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks, an “atmosphere of trust” cannot be created between the two countries. “I don’t think an atmosphere of trust would have been created between India and Pakistan to proceed with a meaningful dialogue. In the absence of that I am sceptical about it,” he told NDTV. — PTI
Qureshi to meet Krishna with ‘positive approach’
Islamabad, September 23 The two Foreign Ministers are expected to meet after talks between Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and her Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir. This will be the first high-level contact between India and Pakistan since the premiers of the two countries met at Sharm el-Sheikh in July. India suspended the composite dialogue process with Pakistan in the wake of the Mumbai attacks in November last year and linked the resumption to Pakistan taking action against the perpetrators of the assault. Qureshi also said he will meet the foreign ministers of several countries on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. —
PTI
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Summit on Climate Change US President Barack Obama, in his maiden address to the United Nations, declared his commitment to moving forward with the ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty that will prohibit nuclear testing. He also set a January goal for starting negotiations on a treaty to end production of fissile material weapons. Obama's comments come even as debate rages in India over the success of the Pokhran II nuclear tests in 1998 and the need for further testing. The US Senate has not ratified the CTBT and congressional sources say Obama will likely have a tough time achieving this goal. "The numbers are simply not there," a congressional source told The Tribune, referring to the support for the treaty from US senators. Pakistan had blocked the FMCT at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, the source said, because it sees an "imbalance with India." Obama told the world body the US would pursue a new agreement with Russia to substantially reduce strategic warheads and launchers. "We will move forward with ratification of the test ban treaty, and work with others to bring the treaty into force so that nuclear testing is permanently prohibited," he said, adding, "We will complete a nuclear posture review that opens the door to deeper cuts, and reduces the role of nuclear weapons. And we will call upon countries to begin negotiations in January on a treaty to end the production of fissile material for weapons." He said nations that refuse to live up to their obligations under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treat must face consequences. "This is not about singling out individual nations -- it is about standing up for the rights of all nations that do live up to their responsibilities. Because a world in which IAEA inspections are avoided and the United Nation’s demands are ignored will leave all people less safe, and all nations less secure," he said. He said Iran and North Korea, through their actions, "threaten to take us down this dangerous slope." But, he added, the US respected their rights and he was committed to diplomacy that opened a path to greater prosperity and a more secure peace for both nations if they lived up to their obligations. "But if the governments of Iran and North Korea choose to ignore international standards; if they put the pursuit of nuclear weapons ahead of regional stability and the security and opportunity of their own people; if they are oblivious to the dangers of escalating nuclear arms races in both East Asia and the Middle East then they must be held accountable," he said. "The world must stand together to demonstrate that international law is not an empty promise, and that treaties will be enforced." In his address, he laid out "four pillars" that he said were fundamental to "the future that we want for our children: non-proliferation and disarmament; the promotion of peace and security; the preservation of our planet; and a global economy that advances opportunity for all people." Obama blamed "an almost reflexive anti-Americanism" for serving as an excuse for "our collective inaction" on major issues. He told delegates it was time "for all of us to take our share of responsibility for a global response to global challenges”. Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush, shared an antagonistic relationship with the United Nations. Bush's UN ambassador John Bolton was notorious for his remark: "There is no such thing as the United Nations. There is only the international community, which can only be led by the only remaining superpower, which is the United States." Obama admitted that when he took office many around the world had come to view America with scepticism and distrust. "Part of this was due to misperceptions and misinformation about my country," he said, adding, "Part of this was due to opposition to specific policies, and a belief that on certain critical issues, America has acted unilaterally, without regard for the interests of others."
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9/11 attack a victory, says ‘mastermind’
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, September 23 Mohammed, the self-proclaimed mastermind of the terror attack on the US, and two of his co-defendants filed the letter last week with the Guantanamo war crimes tribunal in response to a government request to delay proceedings until the Obama administration decides whether to prosecute them in civilian court or in a revamped military proceeding. A judge approved the 60-day continuance Monday in a hearing at the US base in Cuba. Mohammed and the other defendants declined to attend the session. They said in the two-page letter they had no objection to the requested delay. Instead, they quote the Quran to indicate they will continue with their strategy of offering no defence, “I put my trust in Allah. So devise your plot. Then pass your sentence on me and give me no respite.” Mohammed and the two co-defendants, Walid Bin Attash, and Ali Abd al-Aziz Ali, communicate directly to the court because they are serving as their own lawyers. There are two other Guantanamo prisoners charged in the September 11 attack but they have not been cleared to represent themselves. — AP
Al-Qaida predicts Obama’s fall by Muslim world
Cairo, September 23
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Pak seeks promised financial aid
Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has urged the US Congress to approve the Kerry-Lugar bill promising $1.5 billion annual economic aid to Pakistan that has been pending for the past nearly a year.
Zardari, currently in the US to attend the UN General Assembly session, also asked the Obama administration to reimburse the $1.6 billion that Pakistan spent on fighting extremism in the tribal areas. President Zardari made these demands at two separate meetings with US officials, including special envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke. The US pays Pakistan for the anti-extremist operations from a special account called the Coalition Support Fund. Pakistan has not been paid for more than a year. President Zardari also called for an early realisation of about $6 billion pledged to Pakistan in the Tokyo conference of the Friend of Democratic Pakistan (FoDP) early this year where international donors promised to help Pakistan overcome its economic crisis. He will jointly preside over a meeting of the FoDP in New York on Thursday with President Barack Obama and British premier Gordon Brown. Pakistan expects that a donors fund will be announced at this summit to promote economic and political stability in Pakistan. A task force will also be formed for overcoming Pakistan’s energy crisis. In a related development, the US Congress on Tuesday approved an aid package of over $2billion for Pakistan for the current fiscal year ahead of an important meeting between President Asif Zardari and a US economic team.
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Al-Qaida has released a new 106-minute-long video to mark the eighth anniversary of the September 11 attacks and predicted the fall of President Barack Obama at the hands of the Muslim world.The Arabic-language video, released on militant Web sites yesterday, featured a review of the events of the past year and testimony from several leading Al-Qaida figures. — AP