President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday stressed the need for strengthening security and counter-terrorism cooperation in the region.
Addressing fourth Nowruz conference in Ashgabat, he said all regional players would have to unite and make collective efforts to bring peace to the region.
The president said Pakistan firmly believed that peace and stability were vital for economic progress and development of the region. “Pakistan is working to further improve its relations and expand cooperation with the regional countries,” he said.
He said the region had vast natural resources and Pakistan could provide a corridor for transit of exports to other countries.
The president further said that Pakistan was willing to facilitate transportation of LNG from Central Asia to South East Asia and other world markets. He said that the latest seaport of Pakistan at Gwadar was the shortest route for Central Asian States to the Arabian Sea. It also offered excellent port facilities for the export of LNG and other products.
President Zardari said Pakistan was also ready to provide safe transit of piped gas to other neighboring countries.
“We are keen to implement the projects of energy connectivity like Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India and Iran-Pakistan gas pipelines,” he said.
The president stressed that regional cooperation was detrimental for all economic dreams to become a reality for all countries involved.