SAARC Charter embodies people's hopes, dreams - GL
Twenty-five years ago, the South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC) came into being when the leaders of Bangladesh,
Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka placed their
signatures to a Charter that embodies the enduring hopes and dreams of
the people of South Asia.
Since then, our Association has been strengthened with Afghanistan
joining the SAARC family at the 14th Summit, External Affairs Minister
Prof G L Peiris said in a message to mark the 25th anniversary of the
signing of the SAARC Charter. The message: "When we reflect on our
journey spanning 25 years, there is much that we as a Region can hail as
our achievements. We have put in place mechanisms and institutions
necessary to carry out our work and thereby made progress, to promote
conditions for fruitful regional cooperation.
"I believe that the partnership nurtured between our nations over the
last two-and-a-half decades through the SAARC process has given us the
necessary confidence to chart our future course of action with renewed
conviction".
"Sri Lanka, for its part, will continue to remain committed to the
strengthening of the SAARC process and I believe that the twenty-fifth
anniversary of our Association is a fitting occasion to rededicate
ourselves towards achieving the noble task of uplifting the living
standards of the people of our region".
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