Pakistan new PM focuses on ties with neighbours in foreign policy guidelines

Pakistan's new Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has vowed in foreign policy guidelines that his government would focus its immediate attention on its neighbors, the Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.

"Unless the region is peaceful, our efforts for growth and development will not meet with success," Sharif said in the policy guidelines to all Pakistani missions abroad, theForeign Ministry said in a statement.

The prime minister stressed the importance of developing regional consensus on supporting a stable government and peace in Afghanistan. He affirmed that a policy of an Afghan-led, Afghan- owned process of peace and reconciliation will be persuaded.

"With China, which has always been a great friend and a significant economic partner, Pakistan will strengthen this valuable and much appreciated strategic relationship," the statement quoted Sharif as saying in the policy guideline.

On relations with India, the prime minister stressed the need to progressively pursue normalcy in bilateral relations, while actively seeking solutions for all outstanding issues, including Jammu and Kashmir.

The prime minister expressed the desire to deepen relations with countries in the Middle East. "Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Iran are friendly countries with which we shall continue to pursue close cooperative relations."

On relations with the United States, the prime minister noted that the two countries have many areas of common interest. "We will build on convergence and wherever there are divergence we will work to try to minimize and remove such divergence."

With Russia, which is an important partner and regional power, Pakistan will continue to enhance ties, he said.

Despite its recent economic troubles, Europe remains an important player on the global scene and is Pakistan's largest trading partner. "We will continue to engage with European countries, both bilaterally with individual countries, as well as multilaterally with the European Union," Sharif said.

On terrorism, he said that the government will develop a comprehensive strategy and a national consensus in consultation will all political parties, security forces, media and the civil society in dealing with this phenomenon.

"At the same time, it is imperative to address the external dimension of terrorism," he said, adding this would require plugging the sources of external funding of various extremists groups besides seeking cooperation of regional and global community.

The prime minister expressed government's firm commitment to address the energy crisis facing Pakistan in the shortest possible time. He encouraged the Head of Missions to identify potential bilateral and multilateral partners to help to address the energy crisis and formulate tangible project proposals in the traditional and renewable energy sectors.

Photo released by Pakistan's Press Information Department (PID) on June 5, 2013 shows newly elected Pakistan's Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif taking oath during a ceremony in Islamabad, capital of Pakistan. Pakistan's newly elected Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday evening took oath for the post at the President House in the capital Islamabad. (Xinhua)