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| Afghanistan-Pak-India |
| Pakistan says no plans to cut defence despite quake |
| 2005-10-31 |
| RAWALPINDI, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistan has no plans to cut its defence spending despite needing billions of dollars to rebuild after a catastrophic earthquake devastated the north of the country, President Pervez Musharraf said on Monday. Asked at a news conference if Pakistan was considering cutting defence spending, Musharraf, who is also Pakistan's army chief, replied: "No, we are not contemplating ... not at all contemplating any defence cut. "There is a security requirement which is separate and there is the earthquake requirement which is totally separate," he said. "We don't want to do one and jeopardise the other. This would be most unwise." Musharraf said Pakistan would host an international donors' conference to be attended by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Nov. 19 to raise funds for reconstruction after the Oct. 8 quake, which devastated wide areas of Pakistani Kashmir and North West Frontier Province. Musharraf said financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the Asian Development Bank would be invited along with Pakistani industrialists. He said Pakistan was very happy with an agreement with India to open five crossing points over the military Line of Control separating Pakistani and Indian Kashmir and said it was a "great opportunity" to move forward a peace process with India. He repeated Pakistan's condemnation of bloody bomb attacks in New Delhi on Saturday claimed by an obscure militant group linked to Pakistan-based militants. "I say that Pakistan stands with India on this act of terrorism which has been perpetrated in New Delhi. We condole with India, we condole with all families," he said. "I would like to give the total and unequivocal support from Pakistan in any investigation that India would like to carry out." Musharraf said India and Pakistan should make the earthquake an opportunity to move towards a solution to their rivalry over Kashmir, the cause of two of their three wars since independence in 1947. "I think we should, may think of demilitarisation of the whole of Kashmir," he said. "I think this is an opportunity we should utilise for a solution, for moving towards a solution. I think this is a great opportunity." The massive costs of rebuilding after the earthquake, which Pakistan has estimated at more than $5 billion, had raised speculation about defence deals, including Islamabad's plans to purchase F-16 fighter aircraft from the United States. Less than two weeks after the quake, Swedish defence group Saab announced an 8 billion crown ($1 billion) order from Pakistan for an airborne surveillance system, of which Ericsson would a have a one third share. The system includes Saab 2000 turboprop aircraft equipped with airborne radar from Ericsson. |
| Posted by:john |