ISLAMABAD, Dec 7 : President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday said Pakistan was prepared to work with all willing South Asian states to promote trade, transit, energy linkages and people-to-people contacts for the benefit of the entire region.
In his message on the 40th anniversary of SAARC Charter Day, being observed on December 8, the president extended greetings to the peoples and governments of South Asia. He said SAARC was founded in Dhaka in 1985 on the understanding that South Asia would be more secure and prosperous if its nations worked together.
He noted that Pakistan had consistently contributed to advancing the SAARC vision, recalling that Islamabad hosted the 4th SAARC Summit under the leadership of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto and later the 12th Summit.
The president said the 19th Summit, due to be held in Islamabad in 2016, remained stalled due to India’s refusal to participate. “With disputes across nearly all its borders, India’s approach has become the central impediment to meaningful regional cooperation, leaving the region’s peace and progress unnecessarily captive to its narrow choices,” he remarked.
He said the prolonged deadlock had prompted several member states to consider whether South Asia could afford continued paralysis. There was now growing interest, he added, in exploring a revived regional framework that remained open to all but did not allow a single country to block collective progress.
Zardari suggested that important regional countries, including Iran and China, could be part of a revival plan that would enhance connectivity, economic integration and stability across the broader region.
Reaffirming Pakistan’s commitment to a cooperative and inclusive regional order, he said Pakistan’s geography—at the junction of South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East—placed it in a unique position to support regional linkages. “We are ready to work with all willing states to promote trade, transit, energy linkages and people-to-people ties that benefit the entire region,” he added.
Urging South Asian nations to approach the future with “clarity and sincerity,” the president said the region’s challenges were shared and so must be the solutions. “With a spirit of respect and practical cooperation, we can shape a more peaceful and prosperous South Asia for our future generations,” he said.