Zardari to call on UN assembly to address anti-Islam film aftermath

Says, President will highlight sacrifices made by Pakistanis in fighting against terrorism, strengthening democracy. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE

NEW YORK: President Asif Ali Zardari will call on the General Assembly and individual member states to address the situation created in the aftermath of the anti-Islam video coming to light in his address at the 67th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Addressing a press conference, Ambassador Masood Khan, who has been nominated to be the next representative of Pakistan to the UN, said that the president would condemn the anti-Islam video. Zardari, who will address the UNGA on Tuesday evening, would “urge the international community to evolve an appropriate legislative framework to proceed against such acts,” said Khan.

Previewing the speech, the ambassador said the president would highlight the sacrifices made by Pakistanis in the fight against terrorism, and the efforts made in the past five years to strengthen Pakistan’s democratic institutions.

Ambassador Khan said the president would also highlight Pakistan’s major foreign policy initiatives, including reaffirming Pakistan’s support for the rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, “to choose their destiny by peaceful means and in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.”

Ambassador Khan also said that in US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s meeting with President Zardari, ANP leader Asfandyar Wali said that “effective coordination” was needed to defeat terrorist attacks on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.

Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Farooq Sattar, who also attended the meeting, said that they were making efforts to break the nexus between terrorists and criminals, and urged the US to invest in the education sector.

In response to a question, Ambassador Khan said that President Zardari also invited private investors to invest in Pakistan.

President Asif Zardari is also scheduled to meet the Chinese Foreign Minister and NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Tuesday.