‘Mutual cooperation a must for SAARC states’

Speakers at a seminar on Thursday said in order to save themselves from exploitation by the foreign countries, the SAARC member states needed cooperation for moving forward, adding that good relations between Pakistan and India were essential to boost the economy in South Asia. The event was organised by the South Asia Free Media Association (SAFMA) to commemorate the SAARC Declaration at a local hotel. Several dignitaries, government functionaries and senior journalists participated in the seminar, which was aimed at creating regional cooperation between the South Asian countries.
Speakers were of the view that the SAARC Declaration had played an important role in creating cooperation among the south Asian countries, but India and Pakistan would have to transform the conflicting relations into cooperation for a peaceful region.
Speaking on the occasion, Lt General (r) Talat said the SAARC countries should not allow security challenges to overshadow trade between the regional countries. He asserted that the Pak-India relations had a greater impact on the trade between the regional countries.
He said it was in the interest of Pakistan to create positive relations with India, adding that if the country wanted to get rid of the terrorism it would have to remove all the sore issues with rival country. “It is vital in the context of our own survival to maintain our cooperation with India,” he said. “But we are not sincere to each other; we do not want to share intelligence with each other and these are the main issues which should be resolved at once,” he stressed.
The speakers said the desire of promoting peace, stability and progress in the region could only be realised through strict adherence to the principles of United Nations Charter and non-alignment, while respecting sovereign equality, territorial integrity, national independence, non-use of force, non-interference in the internal affairs of other states and peaceful settlement of all disputes would contribute significantly to national and collective self-reliance. SAFMA Sectary General Imtiaz Alam said the south Asian countries should create maximum scholarships for the SAARC students.