OTTAWA, 26 September 2003 — Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf said Wednesday that his country was on the verge of becoming the “economic crossroad” of a region that boasts half of the world’s population.
Speaking to members of Ottawa’s Pakistani community, Musharraf said that after the Cold War which pitted the Soviet bloc against the United States and its European allies, “the focus has turned to our part of the world.”
And Pakistan was strategically placed to benefit from it neighbors the landlocked former Soviet Asian republics, Afghanistan, India and China.
The world, he said, “is looking for hubs for these economies.”
While Pakistan’s strategic location was not new, he said: “Unfortunately, we have never taken advantage of this. We have to strengthen our economy and develop a good commercial infrastructure — and we are doing that.”
The president only briefly touched on the current political and security situation in his region. But he insisted, to applause, that it was necessary to “shun militarism and extremism, which will get us nowhere.”
To even warmer applause, he said Pakistan had no intention of scrapping its nuclear weaponry or weakening its armed forces.
Referring to the recent 10-month military stand-off with its nuclearized neighbor, India, Musharraf said: “The (Pakistani) armed forces are maintaining a deterrence, a defense deterrence. We provided the level of force that we needed.
“The 10-month conflict with India was successful because there was a no-win situation (for either side).”
Musharraf is the first Pakistani president to visit Canada in more than 20 years. Relations between the two Commonwealth countries have been cool for most of that intervening gap.
However, with Pakistan seeking a more moderate image on the international political front, and now more market-oriented in trade and investment, Musharraf can be sure of a warm welcome by Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien. The two men will dine together in the evening and have a more informal lunch today before Musharraf ends his visit.
Earlier before embarking on his trip to Ottawa, he accused India on Wednesday of pursuing a sustained arms buildup that threatened to destabilize the entire South Asian region.
In New York, Musharraf said India had embarked on a massive build-up of its conventional and non-conventional military capabilities — including advanced offensive aircraft, ballistic and cruise missiles, ABM systems, nuclear submarines and an aircraft carrier.
“This will destabilize South Asia and erode strategic deterrence,” Musharraf said.
“Those powers which desire peace, stability and security in South Asia ... must review their decisions to offer such strategic weapons systems to India,” he added.
