The Hindu : Responsibility on Saddam Hussein to avert war, says Jamali

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 02, 2003

International

International

Responsibility on Saddam Hussein to avert war, says Jamali

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD FEB. 1. The Pakistan Prime Minister, Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, who has just returned from a tour of the Persian Gulf, says that there is consensus in the region that the onus is on the Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, to avoid a conflict.

Mr. Jamali told a news conference that the Gulf countries have a genuine concern for peace in the region and "we agreed that Iraq, on its part, should fully comply with all relevant U.N. Security Council resolutions''.

In recent days, Pakistan has been emphasising that it was up to the Iraqi President to make a difference to the current crisis. A day after the U.N. chief weapons inspector, Hans Blix, presented his report to the United Nations Security Council, Islamabad issued a statement saying that heavy responsibility lay on the shoulders of Mr. Hussein. The Jamali Government is in a dilemma on Iraq. It is caught between the rising anti-American sentiment within the country and its status as a frontline state in the U.S.-led coalition in the so called war against terrorism. He committed a faux pas minutes before he took off on his Gulf tour by declaring that Islamabad never sided with "oppressors". Implied in the statement was the suggestion that Pakistan endorsed the U.S. demand for regime change but the Foreign Office jumped into the fray to control the damage.

Mr. Jamali paid "working visits'' to the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain from January 25 to 30. He said that his consultations with the leadership of the GCC countries in the backdrop of the prevailing regional situation were of "special importance for Pakistan and the GCC member states.'' He said, "There was general agreement that should military action become inevitable, it be taken within the framework of the United Nations. We also agreed that in the emerging scenario, all efforts should be made to preserve and safeguard the territorial integrity, stability and independence of all states in the region.''

He said there was a consensus that preservation of peace in the Gulf is "extremely important for the maintenance of regional and international security that would be consistent with our commitment to the Organisation of Islamic Conference resolutions". There was a genuine concern among the leaders of the Gulf countries regarding the consequences of a war in the region and a desire to do their best to avert it, he said. The Prime Minister said he also briefed the leadership of the "brotherly states'' on the current status of relations between India and Pakistan, particularly the Jammu and Kashmir dispute. He pointed out India's "consistent refusal" to enter into a dialogue with Pakistan and termed it "regrettable which had aggravated tension in South Asia.''

The GCC leaders, according to Mr. Jamali, while expressing support for Pakistan, hoped that dialogue would be resumed at an early date.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

International

Stories in this Section

Iraq: Disarmament must take place soon: Bush

UNICEF wants LTTE to stop recruiting children

Indo-Thai talks: Call for concerted global action against terrorism

Kalpana did India proud

Responsibility on Saddam Hussein to avert war, says Jamali

Foreign mediation not needed in Nepal: India

Sharif kin actions trigger speculation

Boris Yeltsin clan keeps Russia in its grip

Pak. rejects Italian allegations

Central Asia is our extended neighbourhood: Sinha

Buddhadeb told of Dhaka's concern on `push-ins'