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Nankana Sahib-Amritsar bus service approved
No commitment from Rice to Pak on F-16s
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Musharraf seeks US
support for Kashmir process
Paul’s nomination evokes mixed response
China bus blast kills 30
Frozen lake on Mars
Official testifies against Jackson
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Nankana Sahib-Amritsar bus service approved
Nankana Sahib (Pakistan), March 17 Addressing a gathering here, Mr Elahi said the government was taking care of all Sikh religious places in Nankana Sahib, reports Online news agency. The Government of Punjab has released a grant of Rs.1 billion towards making Nankana Sahib a model city. All projects would be completed within a year, he said. He said a mega sports event would be organised between the Punjab states in both countries. Indian Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Mr Elahi had on Wednesday laid the foundation stone of a highway to facilitate the journey of Sikh pilgrims. The dual carriageway road would link the Pakistan-India border town Mananwala to Nankana Sahib. — IANS
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Lahore, March 17 According to the Daily Times, Shah visited Lahore on March 11 and stayed in the city for three days before flying back to Delhi on Tuesday. Shah is playing the role of a religious scholar in the film, directed and produced by Shoaib Mansoor, and shot in Pakistan, England and America. Shah’s host, Yousaf Salahuddin, also arranged a musical evening for Shah, where ghazal vocalist Fareeda Khanum and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan enthralled the distinguished guest. Shah’s Lahore visit was kept a secret at his request. Besides Shah, the film also includes Iman Ali, Ali Zafar, Junaid Jamshed, Naeem Tahir, Imran Pirzada, Seemi Raheel, Shahnawaz Zaidi, Ayub Khoso and Hollywood-based English cameraman Nick. — ANI
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No commitment from Rice to Pak on F-16s
Islamabad, March 17 “The (F-16s) issue has become more complex after the nuclear scandal,” a media report said about Ms Rice’s talks with President Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz yesterday. “Although the hype about the sale of F-16s in Pakistan and India did not materialise, yet the issue is still going to figure high in the meeting. The issue of F-16s has become far more complex after the nuclear scandal while the United States is ready to discuss the same with the two countries,” the daily News said quoting officials. It said Pakistan would continue to press Washington get more than 70-odd aircraft besides a total upgrade of its existing fleet. There was no indication yet whether Ms Rice had given commitment to consider it in future. In her talks with President Musharraf, Ms Rice has lauded Pakistan’s leadership for the effort against terrorism but could not furnish any assurance over the delivery of F-16s, another newspaper, Pakistan Observer, said in its report.
— PTI |
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Musharraf seeks US
support for Kashmir process
Islamabad, March 17 During a meeting with the visiting US Secretary of State Dr Condoleezza Rice, he underscored that normalisation in the region would not be possible without the settlement of the core dispute between Pakistan and India. The confidence-building measures should be matched by tangible progress in the dialogue process, the President said. The US Secretary of State praised President Musharraf’s vision for South Asia and initiatives to promote peace and stability in the region. She briefed the President about her discussion with the Indian leadership on issues of common interest. Dr Rice also appreciated Pakistan’s support to Afghanistan’s efforts for stability and reconstruction in that country. President Musharraf and Secretary Rice expressed satisfaction at the excellent cooperation between Pakistan and the USA in wide-ranging fields. They reviewed bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and international issues of mutual interest. Lauding Pakistan’s role in promoting regional peace and stability, Dr Rice reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to have a broad-based and sustainable partnership with Pakistan. She said the USA was stepping up support to Pakistan’s plans for socio-economic development and added that her country would look into ways of expediting defence cooperation with Pakistan. The President called upon the international community to address the underlying causes of tension like Palestine and Kashmir in order to bring the present turmoil to an end. He recalled his concept of enlightened moderation which envisaged a partnership between the West and the Muslim countries to address the root causes of extremism and to assist in poverty alleviation and economic development. Qudssua Akhlaque adds: Dr Rice held separate meetings with Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and President Musharraf. Sources privy to her meetings described them as ‘‘very positive’’. ‘‘Ms Condoleezza Rice’s overriding message to the Pakistani leadership was that the USA is interested and committed to a long-term, multi-faceted partnership with Pakistan,’’ informed sources told Dawn. Earlier, the US Secretary of State arrived here aboard a special aircraft from New Delhi where she had held talks with the Indian leadership. This is her first bilateral visit to Pakistan after taking over as the Secretary of State. Apparently, the US Secretary of State also shared with her hosts the Bush Administration’s concerns about the gas pipeline project with Iran. On the nuclear issue, Pakistani leaders held out the assurance to Secretary Rice that Islamabad was committed to the international objectives of non-proliferation. There were ‘‘no demands’’ from the top US diplomat on this question, the sources said. Her message from New Delhi was that the Indian leadership wanted to move ahead in the peace process with Pakistan. However, she was reminded by the Pakistani leadership that to sustain the dialogue process, progress on the key issue of Kashmir was imperative. Apparently, she accepted this view. Significantly, Dr Rice’s trip coincides with a visit by the US-Pakistan Business Council delegation representing business interests worth one trillion dollars, indicating forward movement in bilateral relations on both political and economic fronts.
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Paul’s nomination evokes mixed response
US President George W. Bush has nominated Deputy Defence Secretary Paul D.
Wolfowitz, a neo-conservative who many regard as the chief architect of the war in Iraq, as the next president of the World Bank.
The stunning nomination comes on the heels of Mr Bush’s equally controversial decision to appoint another administration hawk, John R. Bolton, to serve at Washington’s ambassador in the United Nations. Mr Bush on Wednesday described Mr Wolfowitz as a “proven leader and experienced diplomat, who will guide the World Bank effectively and honorably during a critical time in history — both for the Bank and the developing nations it supports.” “He has devoted his career to advancing the cause of freedom,” the President said, adding, “He is a person of compassion who believes deeply that lifting people out of poverty is critical to achieving that goal. With his significant experience in government, including as a former ambassador, and as an academic, Paul has a deep understanding of developmental issues and economic and political reform.” Asked what kind of message Mr Wolfowitz’s nomination would send the rest of the world, Mr Bush told a White House press conference: “The World Bank is a large organization; the Pentagon is a large organisation — he’s been involved in the management of that organisation.” The US traditionally chooses the head of the World Bank but the nomination must be approved by the Bank’s directors, who represent member countries. James
Wolfensohn, who currently heads the World Bank, will step down on June 1. President Bill Clinton nominated Mr Wolfensohn to head the Bank and the official has hinted in the past that he would like to continue in the role. On Wednesday, Mr Wolfensohn described his likely successor as a “person of high intellect, integrity and broad experience in both the public and private sectors.” The World Bank said in a statement its board had received Mr Wolfowitz’s nomination and the executive directors of the board, who are charged under the World Bank’s Articles of Agreement with the selection of the Bank’s president, “are in the process of consultations with the member countries they represent.” “An official announcement of the outcome of the deliberations and actions of the Executive Directors will be made as soon as a decision has been reached,” the Bank said. Mr Wolfowitz’s nomination has upset many in Europe and the United Nations. Jeffrey Sachs, special adviser to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan told the Financial Times: “It’s a very surprising and in many ways inappropriate nomination.” German Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul said: “The enthusiasm in old Europe is not exactly overwhelming.” A British-based campaign group, the World Development Movement, described the nomination as a “truly terrifying appointment.” |
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China bus blast kills 30
Beijing, March 17 The exact death toll is still unavailable, as the victims were blown to pieces, said the police, who estimate the tragedy may have killed about 30.
— PTI |
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Paris, March 17 Planetary geologists led by John Murray of Britain’s Open University said the evidence comes from pictures sent home by the European Space Agency’s Mars Express orbiter. High resolution, stereoscopic images reveal a flat, “plate-like terrain” in the region of southern Elysium Planitia, near the Martian equator, that appears remarkably like fields of pack ice on earth, they say. The “frozen lake” measures about 800 by 900 kilometres long and is probably about 45 metres deep on average, making it similar in size and depth to the North Sea. “If our interpretation is confirmed, this is a place that might preserve evidence of primitive life, if it has ever developed on the Mars,” the group ventures in Nature, the British science weekly. The apparent lake lies at the west end of Athabasca Vallis, an outflow channel leading from a trench called Cerberus Fossae. Murray’s team contends the water is the relic of an ocean created from sub-surface ice that was melted by volcanic activity and gushed to the surface along the Cerberus Fossae. — AFP
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Official testifies against Jackson
Santa Maria, California, March 17 "He told me specifically about two events. He believes it happened between five to seven times. He could not articulate what happened but believed it happened five to seven times," Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Sgt Steve Robel told the jury in Jackson's trial yesterday. Robel also said the boy became withdrawn when he first told the police about the alleged abuse at Jackson's Neverland ranch. The boy, who was 13 years old at the time of the allegations, testified last week that Jackson masturbated him at least twice at Neverland in February or March of 2003. The teenager, who met Jackson when he was recovering from cancer, stepped down from the witness stand on Tuesday after defiant exchanges with Jackson's defense lawyer.
—Reuters |
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