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No US troops in Pakistan: FO

By admin | January 31, 2008

The Foreign Office (FO) said on Wednesday that there were no United States army troops in Pakistan.

Addressing a weekly press briefing, FO spokesman Muhammad Sadiq reiterated that a military strike in Pakistan by the US, or any other foreign nation, would be regarded as an act of war and would be dealt with in kind, reported APP.

Sadiq said that caretaker Prime Minister Mohammadmian Soomro would lead a trade delegation to Yemen and Saudi Arabia on February 1. He said the two-day visit was aimed at boosting bilateral ties and expanding cooperation in the areas of economy and trade, reported Online.

The spokesman said the premier was visiting Yemen on the invitation of his Yemeni counterpart. Later, he would visit Saudi Arabia and perform Umrah, Sadiq added.

On President Pervez Musharraf’s meeting with Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak, the spokesman said it had been a chance encounter. He said the two leaders had not discussed Iran, adding, “Iran is our brotherly country and Pakistan stands by its principled position on Iranian nuclear issue.”

Sadiq said Pakistan had lodged a protest with the US over the treatment meted out to Abdul Sattar Edhi in New York. He said US authorities had confiscated Edhi’s passport and green card because his green card had expired, reported NNI.

The spokesman said his (Edhi’s) passport would be returned today but he would have to stay in the US to get his green card renewed.

He said the body of the US embassy official, who died in Islamabad on Monday, was transported to the United States on Wednesday.

The spokesman said Pakistan had taken note of reports that India was starting operations of the Baglihar Dam. He said it expected that the dam matched the specifications proposed by the neutral expert appointed by the World Bank. He said the Pakistan Indus Water high commissioner has requested a chance to inspect the dam before it’s operational.

He said the government was committed to conducting general elections in a free, fair and transparent manner. The names of more than 350 foreign observers have already been approved for election monitoring, he added.

He said the matter of the detention of 14 Pakistanis had been taken up with Spain’s government.

He said the OIC Ministerial Committee would meet in Jeddah on Sunday to discuss the Gaza crisis. Foreign Minister Inamul Haq will represent Pakistan at the moot, he added. agencies

Topics: Pakistan News |