Pakistan President expresses support for Sri Lanka

[Friday, February 01, 2008 - 4.50 GMT]  

Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf welcoming Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama who is on a two day visit to Pakistan expressed his support for the efforts of the Sri Lankan government in its fight against terrorism and to preserve Sri Lanka’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, a statement issued by the Sri Lankan High Commission, Islamabad said yesterday (January 31).

President emphasized the need for elimination of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and apprised Minister Bogollagama of the efforts being made by Pakistan to combat the menace of terrorism and extremism.

Foreign Minister Bogollalgama also paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro at the Prime Minister’s Office. The Prime Minster expressed satisfaction at the increased interaction taking place between Sri Lanka and Pakistan and the enhancement of bilateral relations between the two countries.

Full text of the statement

President Pervez Musharraf on Thursday welcoming Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama who is on a two day visit to Pakistan, expressed Pakistan’s deep gratitude to Sri Lanka for the principled position adopted at the Commonwealth. The President said he was particularly grateful to Minister Bogollagama, who had strongly argued against Pakistan’s suspension from the Commonwealth at the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG). President Musharraf said it was unfortunate that the Commonwealth had to hastily enforce the suspension, being unwilling to allow Pakistan the time required to operationalize reforms. He expressed the hope that the Commonwealth would adopt a more realistic appreciation of the steps taken by Pakistan for the consolidation of democracy in the country.

Responding, Foreign Minister Bogollagama said Sri Lanka was glad to have been able to stand by a good friend. The Minister said he was confident that given a little more time Pakistan would have been able to resolve the issues that were of concern to CMAG. The Minister added that it was his expectation that Pakistan would very soon be able to have the suspension against the country removed and that Sri Lanka would continue to vigorously pursue action in this regard.

The Foreign Minister also conveyed to the President the good wishes of President Rajapaksa. President Musharraf said Pakistan held the President in high esteem and wished him success in his endeavours to end the conflict.

President Musharraf briefed the Foreign Minister on the steps taken by the Government of Pakistan to ensure that the elections in Pakistan on February 18th were carried out in a fair, clean and transparent manner. Minister Bogollagama expressed confidence that Pakistan would be able to restore to restore democracy through the forthcoming election. He said stability in Pakistan was important to the entire region and Sri Lanka looked forward to seeing the process embarked upon being completed successfully.

Minister Bogollagama also briefed President Musharraf on recent developments in Sri Lanka – the termination of the CFA, the announcement on immediate measure to fully implement the 13th Amendment, and the continuing military engagement against LTTE terrorism. He noted that the government was holding local government elections in the Eastern Province in March and would soon take steps to conduct provincial elections in the East. An interim advisory committee as a temporary measure would be implemented in the Northern Province. He emphasized the painstaking manner in which President Rajapksa was seeking to build a consensus within Sri Lanka to find a resolution to the present conflict. Minister Bogollagama expressed the deep gratitude of the Government of Sri Lanka for the support provided by Pakistan in the context of the present conflict in Sri Lanka.

President Musharraf said as a country which is also fighting terrorism, Pakistan well understood the challenge faced by Sri Lanka and expressed his support for the efforts of the government in its fight against terrorism and to preserve Sri Lanka’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. He emphasized the need for elimination of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and appraised Minister Bogollagama of the efforts being made by Pakistan to combat the menace of terrorism and extremism.

Foreign Minister Bogollalgama also paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro at the Prime Minister’s Office. The Prime Minster expressed satisfaction at the increased interaction taking place between Sri Lanka and Pakistan and the enhancement of bilateral relations between the two countries.

The Foreign Minister also paid a courtesy call on former Prime Minister and Leader of the Pakistan Muslim League(N) Mr. Nawaz Sharif. Minister Bogollagama recalled the former Prime Minister’s close association with Sri Lanka during his period as Prime Minister. Mr. Nawaz Sharif who referred to Sri Lanka as “a very very dear friend”, said that he had great respect for the present leadership and saw tremendous potential for increased cooperation.

The Foreign Minister of Pakistan Inam-ul-Haq was associated in the meetings of the President and Prime Minister. Minister Bogollagama was accompanied by Dr. W. Dorakumbura, Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Pakistan, Grace Asirwatham, Director General South Asia and SAARC , Ravinatha Aryasinha , Director General Public Communications and George Cooke, Assistant Director.

Sri Lanka High Commission
Islamabad
Pakistan

31 January 2008