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By Wang Zhaokun The leader of Pakistan's main opposition party reaffirmed his country's commitment to its fight against terrorists over the weekend, but stressed that orders and dictation from other countries will not help Pakistan defeat terrorism. "We are not pessimists on the war against terrorism and I believe we will finally defeat terrorists. It is going to be difficult but not impossible," Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif, president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Chief Minister of Punjab Province, told reporters in Beijing. Sharif warned that terrorism has the danger of "shaking the foundation of Pakistan," and without overcoming the issue, his country will not be able to move forward significantly. The PML-N leader said thousands of Pakistanis have sacrificed their lives over the last few years in the battle against terrorism including soldiers, police and ordinary Pakistani citizens, many of whom were women and children. "What else can show our commitment and determination to the war against terrorists?" he asked. The chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, last week accused Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency of having ties with the Afghan Taliban in the northwestern tribal belt. "It's fairly well known that the ISI has a longstanding relationship with the Haqqani network," Mullen told Pakistan's daily Dawn newspaper during his visit to Islamabad. The Pakistani army rejected Mullen's comments as "negative propaganda" by the US and Pakistan's army chief said Saturday his forces had "broken the back" of Islamist militants. A report issued by the White House earlier this month also claims that Pakistan has "no clear path" to defeating militants on its soil and Pakistan's fight against militancy is making little progress. Sharif said what Pakistan wants for its fight against terrorism is more international support and help instead of orders and dictation from other countries. "We want to win this war from our own requirements and strategic planning. It's not from the requirements of any other countries," he said. He underlined that while international help is important for his country, Pakistan has to learn to "rely on its own resources" and "stand on its own feet." "If foreign aid comes with political conditions, we'd rather give it up because it will compromise our national sovereignty," he added. As the chief minister of Pakistan's most populous province, Sharif said that to remove terrorism from Pakistani soil, military operations have to be combined with other measures including education, job creation and health programs. Shahbaz Sharif is the brother of Nawaz Sharif, former prime minister of Pakistan. He led a delegation from Punjab Province to China last week for a visit at the invitation of the International Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee. Agencies contributed to this story |
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