ISTANBUL, (Turkey), Oct. 30 (APP): President Asif Ali Zardari arrived here on Sunday on the invitation of Turkish President Abdullah Gul to participate in the sixth trilateral summit being hosted by Turkey to find a peaceful and everlasting solution of Afghanistan issue. President Zardari was accorded warm welcome at Ataturk International Airport and he was received by Governor of Istanbul Hseyin Avni Mutlu, Pakistani Ambassador to Turkey Muhammad Haroon Shaukat, Turkish Ambassador to Pakistan M. Babur Hizlan and officials of Pakistan Embassy. The President was accompanied by Minister for Defence Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar and Minister for Interior Rehman Malik. President Zardari will hold bilateral talks with Turkish President Abdullah Gul besides participating in the trilateral summit.
The trilateral summit, will start on November 1, with opening remarks by Turkish President Hamid Karzai, followed by the address by President Asif Ali Zardari and Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
General Necdet Ozal, Chief of General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces will participate in a session regarding the Turkey-Afghanistan-Pakistan Trilateral Meeting among the highest level military officials from the three countries.
The trilateral summit will be followed by Istanbul Conference for Afghanistan being held on November 2, which will be attended by foreign ministers of 14 neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, representatives of other countries and international organizations.
The Trilateral Summit is taking place at a time when Pakistan-Afghanistan relations are facing problems mainly due to accusatory statements emanating from Kabul. This summit is therefore, seen as an ice breaking meeting.
The Afghanistan-Pakistan-Turkey trilateral process was launched in April 2007 and the subsequent Trilateral Summits were hosted by Turkey in December 2008, April 2009, January 2010 and December 2010.
The focus of the first Trilateral Summit was on cooperation in promoting peace, security, stability and economic development in the region. The leaders agreed to support moderation and fight all forms of extremism and terrorism through coordinated action.
The first Summit established a Joint Working Group with the participation of high level representatives of the three countries and was given mandate to monitor the progress of implementation of the agreed matters.
During the second Trilateral Summit the leaders agreed that security, peace and development were interlinked. They underscored the need for promoting economic and trade cooperation between the three countries and also for regional and trans-regional cooperation.
The recommendations of the Joint Working Group in areas of comprehensive dialogue at all levels, military cooperation, security cooperation in counter-terrorism and counter-narcotics, energy, transport corridors and socio-economic projects were approved by the Summit.
An Istanbul Forum bringing together corporate leaders of the three countries was also established on the sidelines of Trilateral Summit in December 2008.At the third Trilateral Summit, the leaders were joined by the Military and Intelligence Chiefs of the three countries. The three Ministers of Foreign Affairs also held a separate meeting on this occasion.
The leaders decided to expand and strengthen the trilateral cooperation committing all their relevant institutions.
At the fourth Trilateral Summit, Turkey’s primary focus was on cooperation in Education and an Education Ministers’ meeting preceded the Summit.
The meeting adopted a joint statement which contained recommendations for the further development of mutual friendship and cooperation between future generations.
The military and intelligence chiefs of the three countries also held meetings on the margins of the 4th Trilateral Summit. These meetings recommended joint trainings in anti-terrorism efforts and sharing of best practices in this area.
The three Presidents stressed that closer economic cooperation especially in the fields of energy and transportation should be focused in the next Trilateral Summit.
The 5th Trilateral Summit was hosted by Turkey in Istanbul on 24 December, 2010. The President attended the Summit. The primary focus of the Fifth Trilateral Summit was on political reconciliation and development dimensions in Afghanistan.
In the run-up to the 5th Summit, Pakistan had requested Turkey to expand the areas of cooperation beyond security and military and suggested due emphasis on “development”. Five documents in the areas of video-conferencing, disaster management, cultural cooperation, media cooperation and capacity building of civilian security agencies were signed at the conclusion of the Summit.
The joint statement issued after 5th trilateral summit affirmed trans-regional development as the key priority area as well as multi-dimensional trilateral cooperation through public-private partnership as an important element of the trilateral process.
As a follow-up, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) of Pakistan has completed all codal formalities with regard to the MoU signed at the 5th Summit and it is now at implementation stage. In line with this MoU, a Disaster management Simulation Exercise will be held at Istanbul on 16-17 November this year.
In line with the Letter of Intent in the field of Mass Media, the news agencies of Pakistan, Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) and Turkey (Anatolia) have signed a Cooperation Agreement on October 12, 2011. The other documents signed in the field of police cooperation and culture are being processed by the concerned ministries.
The President will hold a bilateral meeting with Turkish President Abdullah Gul at Istanbul on October 31 and also attend a tˆte-…-tˆte dinner the same evening hosted by the Turkish President for Pakistani and Afghan Presidents.
The Trilateral Summit will be held on Tuesday and in the forenoon there will be bilateral meetings of the Turkish President separately with Pakistan and Afghan Presidents while in the afternoon there will be two sessions of the Trilateral Summit - one Limited Session and the other General Session.
On the sidelines of the Summit, trilateral meetings of Interior Ministers, Army Chiefs and Intelligence Chiefs from the three countries, are also scheduled to be held.
The meetings of Istanbul Forum (business) and Women Entrepreneurs Round Table will also take place.
The 6th Trilateral Summit is expected to focus primarily on thaw in relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The issues expected to come under discussion are political and security situation in
Afghanistan, transition, peace and reconciliation process, cooperation and development, and the Istanbul Regional Conference.Pakistan has all along supported President Karzai’s peace efforts and supported an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned process of reconciliation.
However, Pakistan does not aspire to determine the political dispensation in Kabul. On Afghanistan’s request, Pakistan has established a two-tier Joint Commission to support the reconciliation process. The Commission is co-chaired by Prime Minister Gilani and President Karzai.
Pakistan is also engaged with Afghanistan and the US trilaterally in the ‘Core Group’ as part of the efforts to support the peace process.
The assassination of Prof Burhanuddin Rabbani on 20th September 2011 in Kabul is a set back to the peace and reconciliation process, which can have far-reaching consequences for the future outlook of Afghanistan and the region and it is expected that the sixth trilateral summit can play vital role in
improving the peace, security and development in Afghanistan and in the region.
Pakistan attaches importance to the various Trilateral, Quadrilateral and other processes relating to Afghanistan and will continue to contribute constructively to all endeavours and initiatives in this regard.
Pakistan hoped that Istanbul Conference on Afghanistan would provide a platform to express region’s solidarity and support for Afghanistan in its endeavours to establish peace and stability; an inclusive process of national reconciliation; consolidate its sovereignty and territorial integrity; and achieve socio-economic prosperity by undertaking mutually beneficial economic cooperation with neighbouring states, the region and the world.
The diplomatic sources told APP in Istanbul that Pakistan supports efforts for a secure, peaceful and prosperous Afghanistan contributing to stability, security and prosperity in the region.
They said regional support for this undertaking is of particular significance. The concept of developing a harmonious and mutually beneficial partnership between Afghanistan and the region is important.
They opined that the Istanbul Conference should manifest in tangible terms its support for Afghanistan on the basis of established principles of inter-state conduct enshrined in the UN Charter and the International Law as well as material, financial and technical support for socio-economic development.
They said in dealing with the existing challenges, the Conference should also affirm support for eliminating all forms and manifestation of terrorism as well as production and trafficking of drugs in psychotropic substances.
The diplomatic sources said it is important that unity of purpose and the region’s support for Afghanistan must be ensured through “consensus decision making”.
They were of the view that the existing regional organizations and arrangements may also be urged to prioritize support in their respective domains for achieving the afore-stated objectives of a stable, peaceful and prosperous Afghanistan in a stable, peaceful and prosperous region.
General Necdet Ozal, Chief of General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces will participate in a session regarding the Turkey-Afghanistan-Pakistan Trilateral Meeting among the highest level military officials from the three countries.
The trilateral summit will be followed by Istanbul Conference for Afghanistan being held on November 2, which will be attended by foreign ministers of 14 neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, representatives of other countries and international organizations.
The Trilateral Summit is taking place at a time when Pakistan-Afghanistan relations are facing problems mainly due to accusatory statements emanating from Kabul. This summit is therefore, seen as an ice breaking meeting.
The Afghanistan-Pakistan-Turkey trilateral process was launched in April 2007 and the subsequent Trilateral Summits were hosted by Turkey in December 2008, April 2009, January 2010 and December 2010.
The focus of the first Trilateral Summit was on cooperation in promoting peace, security, stability and economic development in the region. The leaders agreed to support moderation and fight all forms of extremism and terrorism through coordinated action.
The first Summit established a Joint Working Group with the participation of high level representatives of the three countries and was given mandate to monitor the progress of implementation of the agreed matters.
During the second Trilateral Summit the leaders agreed that security, peace and development were interlinked. They underscored the need for promoting economic and trade cooperation between the three countries and also for regional and trans-regional cooperation.
The recommendations of the Joint Working Group in areas of comprehensive dialogue at all levels, military cooperation, security cooperation in counter-terrorism and counter-narcotics, energy, transport corridors and socio-economic projects were approved by the Summit.
An Istanbul Forum bringing together corporate leaders of the three countries was also established on the sidelines of Trilateral Summit in December 2008.At the third Trilateral Summit, the leaders were joined by the Military and Intelligence Chiefs of the three countries. The three Ministers of Foreign Affairs also held a separate meeting on this occasion.
The leaders decided to expand and strengthen the trilateral cooperation committing all their relevant institutions.
At the fourth Trilateral Summit, Turkey’s primary focus was on cooperation in Education and an Education Ministers’ meeting preceded the Summit.
The meeting adopted a joint statement which contained recommendations for the further development of mutual friendship and cooperation between future generations.
The military and intelligence chiefs of the three countries also held meetings on the margins of the 4th Trilateral Summit. These meetings recommended joint trainings in anti-terrorism efforts and sharing of best practices in this area.
The three Presidents stressed that closer economic cooperation especially in the fields of energy and transportation should be focused in the next Trilateral Summit.
The 5th Trilateral Summit was hosted by Turkey in Istanbul on 24 December, 2010. The President attended the Summit. The primary focus of the Fifth Trilateral Summit was on political reconciliation and development dimensions in Afghanistan.
In the run-up to the 5th Summit, Pakistan had requested Turkey to expand the areas of cooperation beyond security and military and suggested due emphasis on “development”. Five documents in the areas of video-conferencing, disaster management, cultural cooperation, media cooperation and capacity building of civilian security agencies were signed at the conclusion of the Summit.
The joint statement issued after 5th trilateral summit affirmed trans-regional development as the key priority area as well as multi-dimensional trilateral cooperation through public-private partnership as an important element of the trilateral process.
As a follow-up, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) of Pakistan has completed all codal formalities with regard to the MoU signed at the 5th Summit and it is now at implementation stage. In line with this MoU, a Disaster management Simulation Exercise will be held at Istanbul on 16-17 November this year.
In line with the Letter of Intent in the field of Mass Media, the news agencies of Pakistan, Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) and Turkey (Anatolia) have signed a Cooperation Agreement on October 12, 2011. The other documents signed in the field of police cooperation and culture are being processed by the concerned ministries.
The President will hold a bilateral meeting with Turkish President Abdullah Gul at Istanbul on October 31 and also attend a tˆte-…-tˆte dinner the same evening hosted by the Turkish President for Pakistani and Afghan Presidents.
The Trilateral Summit will be held on Tuesday and in the forenoon there will be bilateral meetings of the Turkish President separately with Pakistan and Afghan Presidents while in the afternoon there will be two sessions of the Trilateral Summit - one Limited Session and the other General Session.
On the sidelines of the Summit, trilateral meetings of Interior Ministers, Army Chiefs and Intelligence Chiefs from the three countries, are also scheduled to be held.
The meetings of Istanbul Forum (business) and Women Entrepreneurs Round Table will also take place.
The 6th Trilateral Summit is expected to focus primarily on thaw in relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The issues expected to come under discussion are political and security situation in
Afghanistan, transition, peace and reconciliation process, cooperation and development, and the Istanbul Regional Conference.Pakistan has all along supported President Karzai’s peace efforts and supported an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned process of reconciliation.
However, Pakistan does not aspire to determine the political dispensation in Kabul. On Afghanistan’s request, Pakistan has established a two-tier Joint Commission to support the reconciliation process. The Commission is co-chaired by Prime Minister Gilani and President Karzai.
Pakistan is also engaged with Afghanistan and the US trilaterally in the ‘Core Group’ as part of the efforts to support the peace process.
The assassination of Prof Burhanuddin Rabbani on 20th September 2011 in Kabul is a set back to the peace and reconciliation process, which can have far-reaching consequences for the future outlook of Afghanistan and the region and it is expected that the sixth trilateral summit can play vital role in
improving the peace, security and development in Afghanistan and in the region.
Pakistan attaches importance to the various Trilateral, Quadrilateral and other processes relating to Afghanistan and will continue to contribute constructively to all endeavours and initiatives in this regard.
Pakistan hoped that Istanbul Conference on Afghanistan would provide a platform to express region’s solidarity and support for Afghanistan in its endeavours to establish peace and stability; an inclusive process of national reconciliation; consolidate its sovereignty and territorial integrity; and achieve socio-economic prosperity by undertaking mutually beneficial economic cooperation with neighbouring states, the region and the world.
The diplomatic sources told APP in Istanbul that Pakistan supports efforts for a secure, peaceful and prosperous Afghanistan contributing to stability, security and prosperity in the region.
They said regional support for this undertaking is of particular significance. The concept of developing a harmonious and mutually beneficial partnership between Afghanistan and the region is important.
They opined that the Istanbul Conference should manifest in tangible terms its support for Afghanistan on the basis of established principles of inter-state conduct enshrined in the UN Charter and the International Law as well as material, financial and technical support for socio-economic development.
They said in dealing with the existing challenges, the Conference should also affirm support for eliminating all forms and manifestation of terrorism as well as production and trafficking of drugs in psychotropic substances.
The diplomatic sources said it is important that unity of purpose and the region’s support for Afghanistan must be ensured through “consensus decision making”.
They were of the view that the existing regional organizations and arrangements may also be urged to prioritize support in their respective domains for achieving the afore-stated objectives of a stable, peaceful and prosperous Afghanistan in a stable, peaceful and prosperous region.
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