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China for boosting SAARC ties

Nirupama Subramanian

ISLAMABAD: Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing reiterated on Sunday that Beijing wants to use its observer status at SAARC to contribute to "the development and prosperity" of South Asia.

In Pakistan on an official visit en route to the April 2-3 New Delhi SAARC summit where China would participate for the first time as an observer, the Minister said his country attached importance to South Asia and was committed to developing "long-term, stable and friendly relations" with the countries in the region.

China welcomed the progress in South Asia, made individually by each country and through the regional grouping and hoped that all the countries in the region would enjoy political stability and economic prosperity, Mr. Li said at a joint press conference with Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri.

The observer status granted to China at the Dhaka summit had provided it a "new platform" to expand ties with South Asian countries, Mr. Li said.

Beijing's contribution

"We would like to use this opportunity to discuss with SAARC ways to further our co-operation in various areas, for win-win and mutually beneficial co-operation and to make our own contribution to the development and prosperity of South Asia," he said.

Mr. Kasuri said although SAARC had been held back due to the tensions between India and Pakistan, the last three years had seen a "sea change' in the relations between the two countries.

In an oblique reference to the South Asia Free Trade Area agreement over the implementation of which India and Pakistan have major differences, Mr. Kasuri said there were "differences of interpretation" between the two countries on some agreements but these were "resolvable"on account of the India-Pakistan "goodwill".

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, who will represent Pakistan at the summit, and is scheduled to leave for New Delhi on Monday, said in an interview to CNBC aired on Sunday, that the resolution of the Kashmir dispute was a "must" for SAARC to realise its full potential.

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