Courtesy Call by Mr. Hirofumi Nakasone, Minister for Foreign Affairs, on H.E. Mr. Asif Ali Zardari, President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan

April 16, 2009
Japanese

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For about 20 minutes from 4:30 p.m. on April 16, 2009 (JST), Mr. Hirofumi Nakasone, Minister for Foreign Affairs, paid a courtesy call on H.E. Mr. Asif Ali Zardari, President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, who was on a working visit to Japan. H.E. Mr. Makudoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Foreign Minister of Pakistan, and others also attended the meeting.
At the start of the meeting, Minister Nakasone expressed his welcome to the President, and noted the stability of Pakistan was directly linked to the stability of the entire international community. On that understanding, he expressed his strong expectation that President Zardari would demonstrate strong resolve at the Friends of Democratic Pakistan Ministerial Meeting and the Pakistan Donors Conference the following day to carry out its economic reform and counter terrorism measures, and conveyed Japan’s intention to support Pakistan’s efforts in this regard. In response, President Zardari expressed his deep gratitude for Japan’s initiative in holding the above meetings. The President expressed his belief that the Friends Meeting not only provided an opportunity for friendly nations to agree to strengthen assistance to Pakistan, it also promoted understanding within the international community on the difficult situation faced by Pakistan and its surrounding countries. He then expressed his high regard for the responsible role played by Japan as a major world economy.
The two sides exchanged views on efforts to eradicate terrorism. President Zardari, noting that up to the present time Pakistan had been exerting maximum efforts towards counter terrorism, expressed his intention to continue cooperating with the international community towards harmony and peace. Both sides agreed to accelerate bilateral talks in relation to support for the field of counterterrorism. Minister Nakasone also noted the importance of cooperation by the Governments of India and Pakistan to early resolution of the issue of continued terrorist attacks in Mumbai, in response to which President Zardari said that work was progressing in that direction.
Minister Nakasone noted the progress of cooperative relations between Japan and Pakistan, including refueling activities in the Indian Ocean. Both sides confirmed their intention to cooperate to promote further the bilateral relationship. In particular, they agreed to step up bilateral dialogues in both the public and private sectors.

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