Recovery of all looted money from Sharifs difficult: Sattar

From Our Correspondent ISLAMABAD - Foreign Minister Abdus Sattar has said it is difficult to recover all the looted money from Sharif family. The major portion of the assets which are available in Pakistan has been confiscated by the government. For the time being these recoveries are enough, the Foreign Minister said.
However, in a reception hosted by Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce while talking to newsmen, the Minister stressed that instead of criticising the Sharif family now in exile, the issue should be taken up in the national interest.
To a question whether Sharif family has been exiled in order to recover the looted money from them, the Minister said that not even one-third of the looted money from President of Philippines was brought back to their country.
The Foreign Minister said that Pakistan has got considerable support at international level in the wake of the decision to exile the deposed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and 'we will also get world cooperation to resolve Kashmir Issue.' He said that the assets of Nawaz Sharif are being estimated and the government will acquire about Rs 1.5 billion.
He further said that Nawaz Sharif paid Rs 30 crore in hard cash before going into exile. He said there is information about the bank accounts and assets of Nawaz Sharif in foreign banks but there is no concrete evidence in this connection.
CTBT decision after new US administration policy on treaty NNI adds: Pakistan would take decision about the ratification of Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) after hearing about the new US administration's policy on the treaty.
"As you know last year in 1999, the US Senate's majority who belong to Republic Party had voted against the ratification of CTBT. So we will wait and watch the policy on CTBT of newly elected US President George W. Bush," Foreign Minister Abdus Sattar said on Thursday.
The minister said that the newly elected US President yet has to make his government and Pakistan would watch their policy on CTBT before taking decision on the treaty.
He said that the American's foreign policy would not change with the change of the government "and we should not attach any hope with the new government visualizing that the new US administration in an overnight would change its policy in the favour of Pakistan." "The United States of America is an important world country and effecting the entire world's politics. So we have all the respect for America and would continue joining our hands with them in the UN for the international peace, security and human interest jobs," he said.
He however ruled out the impression that the upcoming leadership in America would influence the Pakistan's foreign policy. "We are concentrating on a foreign policy that serve the interests of our country," he added.
This is our good fortune that we had enjoyed very good bilateral and friendly relations with US "and we would take measures to revive our old good relations with Washington." He said Pakistan has taken sufficient international level safeguards envisaging responsibility and restrain about country's nuclear programme. The nuclear programme was in safe hand, he declared. He said international community has welcomed Pakistan policy of restrain on the line of control during the holy month of Ramazan. He asked India to reciprocate Pakistan's gesture.
He said that India has not responded positively to the Pakistan offer of restrain on the Line of Control (LoC). He said Pakistan believes in the resolution of issues through dialogue and on the basis of justice and merit.
He asked India to come forward and start a meaningful dialogue with the people of Kashmir for the solution of this issue according to the wishes of the people of Kashmir.
About the exports, the Minister said that government has directed all ambassadors to make efforts to increase the exports from Pakistan. "The ambassadors would be the Chief Commercial officers from now onwards", declared the Minister.
Sattar said that the government was taking steps to stablise the economy of the country,adding that the present government has not taken any foreign loan during the last 14 months.
He added that scientific knowledge was the key to success and it was high time that the Islamic countries should take steps in this regard under the umbrella of the Organisation of Islamic Conference.
He further said Pakistan expects that India would allow Kashmiri leaders of All Parties Harriut Conference (APHC) to visit Pakistan to have consultations with the leaders of Azad Jammu and Kashmir as the Indian Prime Minister has already stated to consider for such contacts.
"We hope that the Indian Prime Minister would allow APHC leaders to visit Pakistan for consultations with the Kashmiri leaders of AJK as he already stated to do so".
Asked about the latest development in this connection, the minister said, "we did not receive any information whether New Delhi has allowed APHC leaders to visit Pakistan or not." Talking to the journalists after attending an Aftar Dinner hosted in his honor by Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the minister said that Pakistan would also allow AJK leaders to visit India to have consultations with the leaders of APHC." "Pakistan wants an amicable solution of Kashmir issue according to the wishes of Kashmiri people and would pool in every effort to encourage the efforts of both the sides' leadership of Kashmir for consultations to achieve the objective," he said.
Earlier addressing the gathering he said, "Pakistan has been already following the policy of restrains at the Line of Control during Ramadan and want an amicable solution to the Kashmir dispute according to the wishes of the Kashmiri people." The minister said that root cause of tension and setback to the regional security is the issue of Jammu and Kashmir. "Following the UN latest resolution that Pakistan and India should immediately start talks process for the settlement of Kashmir dispute, we have already offered India for resuming such dialogues," he said.
He said that the Pakistan people have been provided the sense of security after it tested indigenous nuclear arms following the Indian nuclear tests in May 1998. "We are demonstrating responsibility on possessing nuclear arms and do not want to jump in the nuclear arms production race. We are also demonstrating unilateral action to ensure custodial safety of the strategic weapon like nuke arms," he said.
"We want that the people of this region should live in an environment of peace and security without the fears of nuclear clouds on their heads and amicable resolution to Kashmir issue would serve a great job to do so," he said.
He said that many countries including US, China, UK, EU and Turkey appreciated Pakistan's initiatives of inviting India on a table to have purposeful talks on the subject.
Talking about the economic scenario of the country, he said that due to irrational policies of the previous governments the country is facing a debt burden of ranging between 35 to 40 billion dollars.
"In the last 14 months we have paid millions of dollars in the head of debt servicing and repayments and did not add to debt burden. During the past governments every year $3 billion debt burden was added," he said.
He said that the priority of General Pervez Musharraf's government is to revive the economy. The government believes that it would put the country's economy on the right track within the next two years.
The minister said that the government wanted to settle the dispute of Kashmir with India through talks "but we will not accept any dictation or pressure in this connection."