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Ayaz says Pakistan’s foreign policy will never be shaped under any foreign influence
ISLAMABAD: National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq has said that Pakistan would like to have good relations with the United States as well as with all neighbours based on mutual respect and equality.
He was talking to the participants of the 2018 course for senior officials of the Federal Academy of Security Policy of Germany and German Ambassador Martin Kobler in separate meetings in the Parliament House.
Speaker Ayaz Sadiq said that cordial and cooperative relations between Pakistan and Germany need to be further strengthened through substantive and long-term parliamentary and economic cooperation. He emphasised the need for a regular interaction between political leadership, lawmakers and people of both the countries.
Underlining the need for exploring possibilities, he said that Pakistan was a potential country for investment with emphasis on trade and development for enhancing cooperation between the two countries. “This will strengthen impetus of bilateral economic relations between the two countries,” he said.
Exchanging views on global and regional issues, the speaker remarked that Pakistan has a keen interest in promoting regional stability and was making consistent efforts for regional peace and economic stability. He asserted that political engagement on both the sides would bring the two nations closer.
Answering the question regarding stability in Afghanistan, Ayaz Sadiq said that Pakistan wanted to strengthen relations with Afghanistan and work together for peace and prosperity in the region. “Pakistan and Afghanistan are victims of terrorism and both suffered a lot from the extremism,” he said.
He also suggested that a joint strategy and closer cooperation to address the root causes of terrorism should be needed between the two nations. He also briefed the visit of the high-powered Pakistani parliamentary delegation to Afghanistan and shared the detail of the meetings with the Afghan leadership.
The speaker also informed the objectives of the speakers’ conference held in December 2017 where the participants discussed the ways how to tackle the terrorism in the region as well as connect with each other for prosperity and development. To a question, he said that they would like to have good relations with the United States based on mutual respect and equality.
He said that all the political parties in the parliament were on the same page on the issues of Pak-US relation that the foreign policy would never be shaped under any foreign influence. About Pak-India relation, Ayaz Sadiq said that they want better bilateral relations with India without any compromise on the dignity and honour. “Moving forward with India is not possible by brushing Kashmir issue aside,” he said.
German Ambassador Martin Kobler acknowledged the sentiments of the speaker and said that his government also attaches immense importance to its relations with Pakistan and interested to further cement them through cooperation in diverse fields. He agreed that frequent interaction between parliamentarians and business communities would be beneficial for both the nations.
