Pakistan PM Rejects Pressure On Iran Ties

Islamabad, March 3, IRNA – Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani rejected any foreign pressure on Iran-Pakistan bilateral relation including energy cooperation. “We are a sovereign country and we will do whatever is in the interest of Pakistan,' the PM said while responding to a question during 'Prime Minister Online' program, jointly hosted by state television and a private TV channel Thursday night. The Prime Minister statement came a day after US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton opposed Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline. He said Pakistan and Iran have bilateral relations and cooperation in diverse fields including energy, gas pipeline and electricity. To another question, he said there have been ups and downs in the Pak-US relations, adding, Pakistan wants to expand ties with the United States on partnership basis as well as mutual interest and mutual respect basis. He said Islamabad and Washington also share identical views regarding the war against terrorism. Gilani, however added, the United States should refrain from interfering in Pakistan's internal affairs. The PM also referred to the recent Pak-Afghan-Iran Trilateral Summit held in Islamabad and said the issue of political reconciliation (in Afghanistan) was discussed in length with President Hamid Karzai. He said since there was no military solution to the Afghan problem, there was a need to find a political one./end