By Muhammad Najeeb, IANS,
Islamabad : Pakistan wants a Kashmir solution in accordance with the wishes of the people and will continue to provide “full and unwavering moral, diplomatic and political support to the cause of Kashmiri people”, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani said here Monday.
In a meeting with Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Yasin Malik at his office here, Gillani said Pakistan wants an expeditious, just and peaceful Kashmir in accordance with the wishes of the people of the state.
A statement issued after the meeting quoted the prime minister as telling the Kashmiri leader that sustainable peace in South Asia could not be achieved without the settlement of the Kashmir dispute which has bedevilled relations between Pakistan and India over the last six decades.
He said Pakistan believes in the peaceful resolution of the Kashmir dispute through dialogue and expressed the confidence that India would reciprocate positively in this regard.
The prime minister, who heads the coalition government, said the Kashmir issue had been the cornerstone of the Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) foreign policy. He recalled that party founder Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s foreign policy revolved around the resolution of Kashmir dispute.
Gillani said Pakistan had always supported the inclusion of all stakeholders in the dialogue process.
“Pakistan believe that inclusion of true and genuine representatives of the Kashmiri people in the dialogue will ensure a just and durable settlement which would be acceptable to the people of Pakistan,” he said.
He also recalled his meeting with US President George Bush in Sharm-el-Sheikh last month. The Kashmir issue, he said, was discussed and President Bush had said the time was ripe for a solution.
Separatist leader Yasin Malik said the Kashmiri people also supported the peace process and appreciated Pakistan’s efforts to support the Kashmir cause.
Appreciating the principled stand of Pakistan on the issue of Kashmir, Malik said the love and support shown by the government of Pakistan and its people was a source of strength for the Kashmiri people.
He described the PPP as the liberal and moderate face of Pakistan.