PM emphasises that the issue should be resolved under UN resolutions. PHOTO: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said the Kashmir issue should be resolved according to the wishes of the Kashmiri people in line with the UN Security Council resolutions.
He made the remark during his meeting with a delegation of European Parliament at the PM House Tuesday morning. The group, which was on its first formal visit to Pakistan during the present government’s tenure, comprised Lars Gunbar Wigemark, Jean Lambort, Richard Howitt, Michael Galhar and Sajjad Karim.
PM Nawaz noted that the country has benefitted from GSP Plus Scheme as our exports to EU have jumped to around $1 billion.
He said Pakistan is deeply interested in its engagement with the European Parliament and emphasised that a mechanism for regular consultations between the two parliaments needs to be devised. The country attaches great importance to its relations with the European Union, he added.
While talking about fighting terrorism the premier said, “We are committed to eradicating the menace of terrorism from our soil.”
UK minister meets premier
Meanwhile, Rt Hon Francis Maude, British Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, also called on PM Nawaz.
While welcoming him the prime minister said bilateral relations between the two countries are based on sound footing and rooted in shared history.
The premier expressed satisfaction on the overall upward trajectory of Pakistan-UK cooperation, saying frequent high-level exchanges and regular consultations between the two are a hallmark of this relationship.
Talking about Pakistan’s civil service structure, norms and practices the premier said they are largely a continuation of those that the British introduced in the Subcontinent but there is an urgent need to make the civil service more attuned and responsive to the present challenges and realities.
NA Speaker meets EU team
Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq explained to the European delegation the background of 21st Constitutional Amendment to set up military courts which he said was a “stop-gap” arrangement for two years.
“The extraordinary move was taken to counter extraordinary circumstances,” he said.
The Speaker said that these courts were time-bound and were intended to be a “stop-gap” arrangement with a two-year mandate, as envisaged by the National Action Plan [NAP], said a statement issued by NA secretariat
Published in The Express Tribune, February 18th, 2015.
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