Pakistan President urges US to desist from public criticism

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari Thursday urged the US Special Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan, Ambassador Marc Grossman, to exercise mutual restraints in public pronouncements that adversely impacted the bilateral relationship. In a meeting with the US envoy, the Presideent also emphasised the need to develop a cooperative and a joint roadmap to overcome the trust deficit, the Presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar said. President Zardari said that no country has made greater contributions and sacrifices in fighting terrorism than Pakistan and added that the international community owed it to Pakistan and the region to acknowledge it and support Pakistan in its efforts. The President said that Pakistan was committed to pursue fight against militants till its logical conclusion. He said that the enemies of peace will continue to sabotage peace process but we should not let the non-state actors hold hostage the governments in the region. The Spokesperson quoted the President as saying that ironically the militants and terrorists gained the most from verbal assaults and finger pointing at Pakistan or questioning our commitment to fighting the extremists. President Zardari said that it only damaged the relationship between the two countries and undermined the common objective of defeating extremism and terrorism. 'It was high time for the verbal assaults to cease and the rhetoric to cool so that serious and meaningful dialogue between the two countries could resume in earnest,' the President added. Briefing the media about the meeting, Spokesperson to the President, Farhatullah Babar said that matters relating to Pak-US bilateral relations, regional security situation, emerging situation in Afghanistan and the fight against militancy were discussed during the meeting. Babar stressed on following the clearly defined, well documented and mutually agreed terms of engagement between the two countries, which, the President said was necessary to avoid operational irritants that hamper the relationship. The spokesperson said that the President emphasized that a long-term, sustainable and multidimensional relationship with the United States should be based on mutual interest, trust and mutual respect. Grossman thanked the President for meeting and appreciated Pakistan’s struggle against militancy. He also assured US government's continued support for peace and stability in the region, the spokesman said.