ANKARA: The Afghan and Pakistani leaders are to hold talks in Turkey soon, Turkish Foreign Ministry says The aim of the talks is to improve relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan.The spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry, Selcuk Unal has said the Afghan and Pakistani leaders Hamid Karzai and Asif Ali Zardari are to hold talks in Turkey on December 24, hosted by the Turkish President Abdullah Gul.
According to Turkish newsagency, Turkey is trying to encourage Afghanistan and Pakistan to make joint efforts in the fight against insurgents.The meeting is said to be the fifth of it kind hosted by Turkey to strengthen cooperation among the two countries.Meanwhile, a summit of the Economic Cooperation Organisation is to be held on December 23 to boost trade links among Turkey, Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, according to Unal.
ISLAMABAD, Dec 10 (APP): From the love of Pakistanis for Kamal Ataturk to the Turks’ affection for Jinnah – the brotherly relationship is ready to witness a shining era as Pakistan and Turkey have entered a new world of strategic partnership with signing of 17 Memoranda of Understanding in different fields.With ‘Ataturk Avenue’ in Islamabad and ‘Jinnah Jadesi’ roads in Ankara, the two capitals have got a new strategic dimension with the recent official visit of Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani to Turkey.
The signing of 17 MoUs by the two countries has been regarded as a “turning point” to mutually benefit from each others’ potential in the fields including health, education,agriculture, infrastructure, housing and media.
Turkey also offered to build schools and hospitals in Pakistan’s flood-affected regions within six months.
Both the Prime Ministers of Pakistan and Turkey expressed conviction to take personal interest in ensuring practical implementation of the 17 MoUs.
Prime Minister Gilani’s visit to Turkey also marks conferment of three separate honors for him. Turkish President Abdullah Gul awarded the Prime Minister with ‘Jamhuriyat Nishan – The Republic Order’ at a special investiture ceremony in recognition to furthering the relations between two countries.
Another award was Degree of Doctorate of Journalism for the Prime Minister by Turkey’s prestigious Marmara University.
The University Rector termed Gilani as “Man of Culture” and said the institution was interested in learning from his experiences through his lectures.
Gilani also had the honour to address the Turkish Grand National Assembly, making him the first head of the government from Pakistan addressing the Turk parliamentarians.
Prime Minister Gilani who co-chaired the inaugural session of High Level Cooperation Council (HLCC) with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, has termed the body as a “direct interaction between the cabinets of two Prime Ministers”.
In the ancient city of Istanbul, the Prime Minister during his interaction with the Turkish businessmen offered them to invest in agriculture, housing, energy and infrastructure development, with an effort to for private sectors of the two countries to engage deeply with each other. The Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK) of Turkey expressed desire to strengthen the economic relations of two countries on a higher level.
Gilani told the Turkish businessmen that Pakistan had decided to give visa on arrival for 30 days to all Turkish nationals who possessed valid US, UK or Schengen visas.
He also expressed hope that the remaining formalities will soon be completed for the conclusion of Visa Abolition Agreement for bonafide businessmen of Turkey and Pakistan.
Pakistan and Turkey also reiterated their last year’s agreement to increase bilateral trade volume to US$2 billion by 2012.
Prime Minister Gilani concluded his visit with a saying that defines the crux of relationship between Pakistan and Turkey, as “The Pak-Turk relationship is a true sense of brotherhood. It is, as if we are a single family. We value these very special relations and will take them to even greater heights.”
via Associated Press Of Pakistan ( Pakistan’s Premier NEWS Agency ) – Pakistan-Turkey – a journey from ‘brotherhood to strategic partnership’.
Comments alleged to be from WikiLeaks US embassy cables say Indian generals are genocidal and New Delhi backs militants
Pakistan's president Asif Ali Zardari with army chief General Ashfaq Kayani. Pakistani newspapers have written much about Zardari's preoccupation with death but little about the army. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
Pakistan’s president Asif Ali Zardari with army chief General Ashfaq Kayani. Pakistani newspapers have written much about Zardari’s preoccupation with death but little about the army. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
They read like the most extraordinary revelations. Citing the WikiLeaks cables, major Pakistani newspapers this morning carried stories that purported to detail eye-popping American assessments of India’s military and civilian leaders.
According to the reports, US diplomats described senior Indian generals as vain, egotistical and genocidal; they said India’s government is secretly allied with Hindu fundamentalists; and they claimed Indian spies are covertly supporting Islamist militants in Pakistan’s tribal belt and Balochistan.
“Enough evidence of Indian involvement in Waziristan, Balochistan,” read the front-page story in the News; an almost identical story appeared in the Urdu-language Jang, Pakistan’s bestselling daily.
If accurate, the disclosures would confirm the worst fears of Pakistani nationalist hawks and threaten relations between Washington and New Delhi. But they are not accurate.
An extensive search of the WikiLeaks database by the Guardian by date, name and keyword failed to locate any of the incendiary allegations. It suggests this is the first case of WikiLeaks being exploited for propaganda purposes.
The controversial claims, published in four Pakistani national papers, were credited to the Online Agency, an Islamabad-based news service that has frequently run pro-army stories in the past. No journalist is bylined.
Shaheen Sehbai, group editor at the News, described the story as “agencies’ copy” and said he would investigate its origins.
The incident fits in with the wider Pakistani reaction to WikiLeaks since the first cables emerged.
In the west, reports have focused on US worries for the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear stockpile, or the army’s support for Islamist militants such as the Afghan Taliban and Lashkar-e-Taiba, the group blamed for the Mumbai attack.
But Pakistan’s media has given a wide berth to stories casting the military in a negative light, focusing instead on the foibles of the country’s notoriously weak politicians.
Editors have pushed stories that focus on president Asif Ali Zardari’s preoccupation with his death, prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s secret support for CIA drone strikes and tales of a bearded religious firebrand cosying up to the US ambassador.
Among ordinary citizens, the coverage has hardened perceptions that Pakistani leaders are in thrall to American power.
Pakistan has become “the world’s biggest banana republic”, wrote retired diplomat Asif Ezdi last week.
Military and political leaders, portrayed as dangerously divided in the cables, have banded together to downplay the assessment.
“Don’t trust WikiLeaks,” Gilani told reporters in Kabul last weekend. Beside him president Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan, also tarred in the dispatches, nodded solemnly.
On Saturday the army, having stayed silent all week, denied claims that army chief General Ashfaq Kayani “distrusted” the opposition leader Nawaz Sharif. Kayani “holds all political leaders in esteem”, a spokesman said.
Meanwhile conspiracy theorists, including some journalists, insist Washington secretly leaked the cables in an effort to discredit the Muslim world; the Saudi ambassador described them as propaganda.
But senior judges favour their publication. Dismissing an attempt to block WikiLeaks last week, justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed said the cables “may cause trouble for some personalities” but would be “good for the progress of the nation in the long run”.
The lopsided media coverage highlights the strong influence of Pakistan’s army over an otherwise vigorous free press.
This morning’s stories disparaging Indian generals – one is said to be “rather a geek”, another to be responsible for “genocide” and compared to Slobodan Milosevic – is counterbalanced by accounts of gushing American praise for Pakistan’s top generals.
The actual WikiLeaks cables carry a more nuanced portraits of a close, if often uneasy, relationship between the US and Pakistan’s military.
But the real cables do contain allegations of Indian support for Baloch separatists, largely sourced to British intelligence assessments.
Pakistan’s press is generally cautious in reporting about its own army. But some internet commentators said the latest WikiLeaks story was a bridge too far.
via Pakistani media publish fake WikiLeaks cables attacking India | World news | The Guardian.
Uzun yaşamak Türkiye ve Uzun yaşamak Pakistan! Viva Pakistan-Turkey friendship
The Pakistani flag is based on the old Ottoman religious flag system like this one. Pakistan and Turkey don't jsut share a Crescent and Star and a flag–they share a common history, religion and ethnicity
Pakistan and Turkey don’t jsut share a Crescent and Star and a flag–they share a common history, religion and ethnicity. The current government of Turkey has made Turkey the 17th largest economy in the world. It has now undertaken massive projects around the world to spread its power and influence. Many hope of the Neo-Ottomans to resurrect Muslim unity. Others see Ankara as a bridge between the East and the West.
Gialni while speaking to the Turkish grand assembly said
“It is a relationship predating our modern states, an affinity transcending generations. Our people’s affection for Turkey is spontaneous, their love, deep and sincere,”
“There may be a distance of thousand miles between Jinnah Cadesi in Ankara and Ataturk Avenue in Islamabad, but there are no spaces between our hearts. We are one nation living in two states.”
Gilani also referred to the spiritual bond between Maulana Rumi and Allama Iqbal that epitomises the essence of Pak-Turk relationship. He said the two great thinkers, who lived centuries apart, shared a common thread of spiritualism. PM Gilani (The Nation).
The effusive eulogies were not one sided. President Gul also had some very good words to say “Gül described both the award and the medal bestowed upon Gilani as “a strong symbol of eternal, everlasting and unwavering fraternal relationship between our countries and our peoples.” (Daily Zaman)
Both sides were tight-lipped about the burgeoning military cooperation between the two countries–however it is common knowledge that Turkey and Pakistan are working together in UAVs, and Satellites. Ankara is also extremely interested in the JF-17 Thunders.
Turkish President Abdullah Gul and Gilani discussed ways to reinvigorate and deepen Pakistan-Turkey ties by widening cooperation in all spheres.
Erdogan said the Turkish defence industry had significant production capacity in armoured personnel carriers, unmanned aerial vehicles and sea vessels. He said Turkey would start production of attack helicopters by 2013, while referring to possibilities of defence cooperation between the two countries.
PM Gilani met with Turkish Grand National Assembly Speaker Mehmet Ali Shaheen, co-chaired the first plenary session of the High-Level Cooperation Council along with the Turkish PM, and visited the mausoleum of Mustafa Kamal Ataturk. Daily Times.
Turkey is eager to build wind farms and housing in Pakistan.
The Tribune Express from Pakistan reports. ANKARA: Pakistan and Turkey signed 18 Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) in Ankara on Tuesday, in the first-ever meeting of the High Level Cooperation Council (HPCC).
The HPCC brings together senior cabinet ministers from Turkey and Pakistan to actively work on avenues of cooperation between the two countries. A senior Pakistani official described the HPCC as a “joint cabinet”.
Significant MoUs were signed between the health ministries of the two countries, focusing on post-disaster health services, training health personnel and reducing maternal and child mortality rates. More significantly, Turkey also signed a MoU offering Pakistan concessions on Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO) trade. Turkey also focused on assisting Pakistan on post-flood infrastructure reconstruction with the Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan pointing out that Turkey had extensive experience in the housing sector and would offer its expertise to Pakistan on rebuilding homes, schools and hospitals in the flood-affected areas.
The Turkish prime minister also said that Pakistan had a critical need for clean drinking water, which was a project that he wanted to focus on.
This focus on the social sectors is likely to be somewhat disappointing for Pakistan, which was hoping to sign MoUs and agreements on projects such as Thar Coal, hydroelectric power and oil and gas exploration. Pakistan had focused extensively on attracting investment in these sectors, a move that Turkey seems to have set aside for now.
Nevertheless, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani is likely to return to Pakistan as a happy man given that Turkish President Abdullah Gul awarded him the Jamhuriyat Nisan (Republic Order).
Earlier in the day, Gilani also addressed the Grand National Assembly, where he suggested raising the level of trade with Turkey to $2 billion by 2012 and asked the Turkish government to encourage its private sector. Gilani, who became the first Pakistani head of state to address the 90-year-old Grand National Assembly, said the Jamhuriyat Nisan was a great honour for him.
In response to a question by a Turkish journalist in the press conference, Prime Minister Erdogan commented on WikiLeaks, explaining that Turkey had formed a commission to follow up on the disclosures made on the website. The commission comprises the justice ministry, the prime minister’s office and the foreign ministry. He sharply criticised the leaks, saying it would negatively impact America’s diplomatic efforts. (With additional input from APP). Published in The Express Tribune, December 8th, 2010.
Gilani ended his speech at the grand Assembly of Turkey with the words.
“Viva Pakistan-Turkey friendship”.
Uzun yaşamak Türkiye ve Uzun yaşamak Pakistan!
Uzun yaşamak Pakistan Turkey dostluk
Sevgili Türk erkek kardeş ve kız kardeş Pakistanis ve Türk erkek kardeş
via Viva Pakistan-Turkey friendship: ‘We are one nation living in two states’ « Rupee News.
ISTANBUL, Turkey, Dec 8 (APP): Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani Wednesday said his government was keen for close political and economic ties with Turkey, with a determination to further the relationship on geo-strategic advantages.“Time is now ripe for an enhanced future cooperation amongst our countries. I am confident that as in the past, our bilateral relations will continue to flourish through new projects of mutual interest and import to our nations,” the Prime Minister said at a banquet dinner hosted in his honour by Governor Istanbul Huseyin Avnimutlu.The Prime Minister said Pakistan takes pride in its fraternal relations with Turkey and the cordial relations are marked by a rich reserve of mutual goodwill.
“We have convergent perceptions on important regional and global issues and cooperate closely at multilateral forums,” he said, adding that the ‘special relationship’ defied standards of conventional propriety and was strengthening day by day.
He mentioned the partnership that had been given a strategic direction, and the institution of High Level Cooperation Council which was the highest economic linkage that had been established with any country.
“This unique platform provides us an opportunity to enter into long-term ventures in the fields of energy, trade, investments, security, banking and others,” he said.
The Prime Minister said during his stay in Turkey, he had very useful meetings with Turkish President and the Prime Minister.
“The hallmark of our talks has been the establishment of a roadmap for enhanced cooperation in the 21st century,” he said.
Gilani said Pakistan was the emerging market of 170 million people with a vibrant agriculture and services sector and strategically located at the node linking Eurasia and South Asia, China and the Gulf.
“Our unique position also brings us at crossroads of many viable and inexpensive trade routes,” he said.
The Prime Minister said considering the warm relationship, this friendship had the potential to be translated to a strong and long-lasting business partnership.
The Governor Istanbul welcomed the Prime Minister and his delegation and said his visit would prove as a milestone in strengthening the Pak-Turk relations.
The banquet was attended by Commerce Minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim, Defence Minister Ahmed Mukhtar, Minister for Railways Ghulam Ahmed Bilour and other notables of the Turkish government.
via Associated Press Of Pakistan ( Pakistan’s Premier NEWS Agency ).
ISLAMABAD, Dec 7 (APP): Pakistan and Turkey agreed to further enhance bilateral cooperation in various fields particularly in the area of defence.Both the brotherly countries highlighted the need for undertaking Joint Defence Productions benefitting the two brotherly nations in terms of improving and strengthening their defence capability.A unanimous agreement focussing the joint defence productions was reached at a meeting held between Minister for Defence Ch. Ahmad Mukhtar and his Turkish counterpart Vecdi Gonul, in Ankara on Tuesday, says a fax message received from Ankara.
The meeting reviewed the ongoing projects in the defence sector that includes the overhauling of F-16 aircraft. It was agreed to strengthen the existing high level cooperation forum that provides a better platform for improving our relations in various fields.
The minister also thanked his Turkish counterpart for providing assistance for the rehabilitation of flood victims of Pakistan.
via Associated Press Of Pakistan ( Pakistan’s Premier NEWS Agency ).
