International
Pak. reacts strongly to Powell remarks
ISLAMABAD, FEB. 7. Reacting strongly to the U.S. Secretary of State, Colin Powell's call to Pakistan to take measures to reduce cross-border terrorism and crack down on terrorists in a way that could give India confidence, Islamabad today declared that it would not take any action that would not be in the interest of the country.
At the same time Pakistan said it was ready to hold talks with India either bilaterally or through third-party mediation.``I do not think that Pakistan will take any action which is not either in the interest of its people or Pakistan itself,'' the Press Secretary to the Pakistan President, Rashid Quereshi, told reporters. _ PTI
B. Muralidhar Reddy reports from Islamabad:
Pakistan today maintained that it was prepared for a resolution of the Kashmir issue either through bilateral talks or through third-party mediation.
The Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman, Aziz Ahmed Khan, told a news conference here that the most preferable course would be the implementation of the United Nations Security Council resolutions on Kashmir.
``At the same time, we are ready for discussions bilaterally or for a third-party mediation. The sooner it is resolved the better it is for the region and the people of Kashmir.'' Mr. Khan was responding to a question on the observations made by the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, at election rallies in Punjab.
Maj. Gen. Quereshi, who was present at the briefing, described Kashmir as the ``core issue'' between India and Pakistan and asserted that the ``views and wishes'' of the people of Kashmir must be taken into account to resolve the issue.
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