(2014-11-27) [This is a rush transcript. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated] There are No Opening Remarks. The Floor is Open for Questions Question There are reports that Pakistan has not signed two agreements relating to trade. What is the reason behind not signing these agreements? (Fayyaz Chaudhry, APP) Answer It was shared with you at the last briefing that some agreements were under discussions. Two of these have not been finalized as yet. Pakistan is not the only country that has not completed its internal procedures with regard to the two agreements. There are other SAARC members as well. We understand that the reports of the experts group were supposed to be submitted to the concerned Ministers for meeting the procedural requirements. And we have already indicated to the host Secretariat that the procedures had not been completed. Question How do you respond to the reports in Indian media that Pakistan has spoiled agreements on rail and road connectivity which were supposed to be signed during the SAARC Summit? Secondly, it has been reported today that pressure is building up on Pakistan in retreat to sign these agreements? (Zarghoon Shah, Geo TV) Answer I would not give much credence to the Indian media reports and would not like to comment on them. As already explained, the procedures for signing the agreements have not been completed and that Pakistan is not the only country that has not completed the procedures. In any case, the Summit is not over yet. The negotiations obviously continue today. We cannot say conclusively what agreements would be signed. Question The deadline for signing comprehensive nuclear deal between Iran and P5+1 has been extended. What is the position of Pakistan on this development? (Sheraz Asghar, IRNA) Answer Naturally, everyone would have liked to see the closure of this issue through an agreement before the deadline of 24November. That has not happened but we are happy to see that negotiations would continue and additional seven months have been given to complete the negotiations. Question According to report by Human Rights Group that in Drone attacks in Pakistan’s tribal areas many civilians have been killed. What is Pakistan’s reaction on that? (Mr. Khwaja Nayyer Iqbal, Kashmir Post) Answer This is not something new. This is not the first report on this issue. We have referred to these reports. As we have been saying there is now more awareness about the issue of drone attacks. The international public opinion and Human Rights Organizations are reporting about it very regularly. Question I have three questions on different aspects of SAARC Summit. First, when this government started its policy of having good relations with neighbor, at least in Kathmandu it does not seem that this policy has worked. Secondly, India is saying that they have isolated Pakistan. Your comments, please. The Nepalese media has reported that India Prime Minister Modi is interfering in their internal matters, I just wanted to draw your attention on this because Pakistan is also a neighboring country. (Mr. Shaukat Piracha, AAJ TV) Answer We have repeatedly said that we want peace in the neighborhood- peace for development. All the countries in this region confront the problem of poverty. We need to focus on our internal economic stability and development. As the Prime Minister said in his speech yesterday that we need to focus on economic development. Good neighborly ties have to be on the basis of equality. As for the reports in the Nepalese media, I would not like to comment how the Nepalese look at their relations with India or any other country for that matter. Pakistan has played a very constructive role in the meetings leading up to the Summit. We very actively participated in deliberations in the Standing Committee and in the Council of Ministers and this has been appreciated by the host government as well. The Prime Minister has had interactions with six SAARC leaders. I do not see how Pakistan is isolated. Question As you mentioned the Prime Minister had six meetings with his counterparts on the sidelines of SAARC Summit. Would you please share details of meeting of the Prime Minister with the Prime Minister of Bangladesh? How important that meeting was for improving bilateral relations between Pakistan and Bangladesh as we saw tension in the relations between the two countries over a year? (Mr. Waqas Rafiq, Capital TV) Answer I will not describe our relations with Bangladesh in these terms. The two Prime Ministers interacted in New York during the Summit on peace keeping that our Prime Minister co-chaired as Pakistan is one of the leading troop contributing nations to the United Nations peace keeping operations around the world. As we have stated in the past, as a fellow Muslim and SAARC country, we have the best wishes for peace, prosperity of the people of Bangladesh. We struggled together for independence. Question Last week the Indian home Minister accused Pakistan for harboring Dawood Ibrahim at Pak-Afghanistan border and levelled serious allegations against Pakistan for abetting and supporting terrorism and militancy. I would like your comments on this. Secondly, there were reports in US media quoting top intelligence officials that former US Ambassador was spying for Pakistan and a Pakistani official’s conversation was intercepted that he was getting classified information from former US diplomat. Was Pakistan getting classified information from US diplomat? (Mateen Haider, Dawn News) Answer The US diplomat Ms. Raphel has had extensive experience of South Asia. She understood South Asia very well. We have had very positive interactions with her. These are unsubstantiated media reports. There has not been any statement or allegation of this nature from US Administration. As regards Indian Home Minister’s statement, it is not necessary to always respond to irresponsible rhetoric. Pakistan condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Pakistan has paid more price, in blood and money, than any other country in the world in countering terrorism. We are a victim of terrorism that has roots in the events in this region over the last three decades. We reject these baseless allegations. We believe the problem of terrorism can be countered through cooperation not allegations. Question: Few days back Former President of Pakistan Pervaiz Musharraf admitted in an interview that he allowed drone attack. What is your comment on it and how strong our protest on drone attacks remains after this admission?(Khalid Azeem, SAMMA TV) Answer: Look, I would not comment on any specific interview. I have not seen it in any case. We have demonstrated our opposition to the drone attacks not just by statements but by taking practical steps, by highlighting this issue at the multilateral forums, by bringing specific resolutions that question the legality of these attacks. The latest resolution at the Human Rights Council on drone attacks established a panel of experts to discuss this issue further. Those discussions have been taking place. There have been suggestions on how to proceed further on this. Question: Minister of Defence Khawaja Asif said that US policy towards this region has failed. So, does Pakistan thinks that the US needs to review its policy towards Afghanistan and Pakistan and this region?(Essa Naqvi, Dunya TV) Answer As repeatedly stated, we do not comment on statements by the Ministers and political personalities. Pakistan has a very comprehensive and constructive engagement with the US. There are obviously issues on which we have convergence and we may have divergences. We discuss those in our bilateral engagements that take place very regularly. Question My question is regarding the tension and violations along the LOC and working boundary over the last few weeks. Military officials in Pakistan as well as civilian officials mentioned that Pakistan has made efforts to contact the Indian authorities on the other sides to work toward ceasefire. We have not heard much about any efforts at medium to high level about where both sides stand on these hostilities. Has there been progress or any meetings specifically regarding this issue or is it still at the same level?(Qasim Rehman, Wall Street Journal) Answer If you are talking about the military channels, there are certain mechanisms in place. They are meant to deal with such a situation which has arisen as a result of unprovoked Indian firing and violations of ceasefire. How active those mechanisms have been in recent weeks, you may like to ask ISPR. ******************