|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Thursday, 22 July 2004 |
 |
|
 |
World | |
| News Business Features Editorial Security Politics World Letters Sports Obituaries
|
Don't compromise with scourge of terrorism, India Tells SAARC Islamabad, Wednesday (UNI) India asked SAARC countries to make no compromise whatsoever with the socurge of terrorism while Pakistan appealed to the seven-member grouping to devise ways and means to amicably resolve political differences and disputes within the region. In his opening remarks at the 25th session of the SAARC Council of Ministers' meeting here, Indian External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh said the SAARC countries ought to move towards closer cooperation at all levels, political, official and operational, if they were to eradicate terrorism from the region. The two-day meeting, which will review the progress made by SAARC since its 12th summit here in January and also chalk out the agenda for the next summit at Dhaka in January, was inaugurated at the Marriott Hotel this morning by Pakistan Prime Minister Choudhary Shujaat Hussain. Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri was declared the Chairman of the meeting, being attended by his counterparts from India, Bangladsesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and the Maldives. Even as he expressed disatisfaction with the progress made by SAARC since it was launched in 1985 amid much fanfare, Mr Natwar Singh made some far-reaching proposals, including the setting up of a SAARC Infrastructure Fund and a SAARC High Economic Council, to make the association vibrant and effective in tackling various challenges. ''We must acknowledge with a sense of disappointment that SAARC is today perhaps the weakest of various regional cooperation organisations,'' he said. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
Produced by Lake House |
