Philip Hammond, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs & Commonwealth Affairs called on Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif at PM House today.
Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif said that his government faced major challenges of terrorism, economic degradation and energy deficiency after assuming office. We are overwhelmingly contented that our government has delivered on all these fronts. We evolved broad based consensus on National Action Plan, which has yielded very positive results in eliminating the scourge of terrorism from our land. The entire Pakistani nation in general and our brave Armed Forces in particular; have rendered matchless sacrifices in the national drive against terrorism, underlined the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister said that fighting the war against terrorism is the moral obligation of Pakistan, and that his government is leading the war to ensure a peaceful tomorrow for the country and our future generations. We strongly condemn terrorist activities anywhere in the world whether perpetrated by individuals, groups or States. The ongoing military offensive against all terrorist groups operation “Zarb-e-Azb” has broken the back of terrorists, added the Prime Minister.
We are working on war footing basis to overcome the issue of energy shortage by the end of term in office. We will add about10, 000 MW of electricity to the national grid in our tenure. We have reduced power outages to a great deal in the power sector and are working harder to further minimize them, added the Prime Minister.
Mr Philip Hammond appreciated the Prime Minister for leading reform agendas in various aspects. He admired the Pakistani government for its domestic reform agenda and legislation and national policies to protect women and minorities.
You are doing the right thing by reaching out to your neighbours. Your message of peace is in fact reaching to the entire world, which is reassuring, said Mr Philip Hammond.
The British Foreign Secretary said that Pakistani Diaspora of around 1.4 million acts as a human bridge between the two countries to strengthen the existing ties. He further said that they are positively contributing towards British economy and society.
The Prime Minister emphasized that Pakistan has a vital stake in peace, stability and development in Afghanistan and supports efforts for promoting peace and reconciliation through Afghan-owned and Afghan-led peace process.
Pakistan greatly appreciates the work undertaken by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) in various sectors and parts of the country, concluded the Prime Minister.
The delegation included Mr Thomas Drew, High Commissioner, Mr Owen Jenkins, FCO London and other British officials. Mr Sartaj Aziz Advisor to PM on Foreign affairs, Mr Tariq Fatemi SAPM on Foreign Affairs and other senior government officials also attended the meeting.
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