Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani called upon the United Kingdom on Wednesday to gather support for Pakistan to convene the next Pakistan–European Union (EU) summit in Islamabad this year, and said cross-border incursions were being carried out by elements that do not want Pakistan and Afghanistan to come closer and work together for stability in the region. Talking to David Lidington, the British Foreign Office’s Minister for Europe, who called on him here, the prime minister said Pakistan looked forward to build further upon its relationship with the EU and had put forth a draft for a five-year engagement plan between Pakistan and the EU and hoped to conclude it as soon as possible. The prime minister appreciated Britain for its help to Pakistan for greater access to EU markets and expressed the hope that with British help it would be able to achieve the revised GSP Plus Scheme to increase its exports.
Gilani said the access to EU markets and GSP Plus status would greatly facilitate Pakistan in generating economic activities and create jobs for the youth.
Lidington said Britain would continue to plead Pakistan’s case with the EU and beyond in order to see Pakistan integrated into global trade. He stressed the need for sustained efforts by Pakistan to reach out to EU member states for its genuine demand for access to European markets.
In order to strengthen the institutionalised arrangement of Pakistan-EU summit, he called for concrete and feasible proposals to help establish a meaningful partnership with the EU. In the same context, he said European Commission Vice President Baroness Catherine Ashton’s visit to Pakistan in the near future and the prime minister’s visit to New York to attend the UN General Assembly session would provide an opportunity to establish contacts leading to fruitful discussions on the matter. Gilani said the dialogue process initiated by Pakistan with its neighbours, including India, greatly increased the confidence level and improved the approach towards resolving issues that were affecting the lives of the people of the region.
Later, in a meeting with UK Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Mark Philip Sedwill, Gilani emphasised that cross-border incursions by Afghan militants should be curbed in order to avoid the derailment of close brotherly relations between the two countries. He acknowledged the UK’s realisation of Pakistan’s crucial role in the peaceful settlement of Afghanistan’s issues in such a way that no negative fallout effected Pakistan or any other country in the region after the drawdown of international troops.
