Pak "petri dish" of int'l terrorism, says Zardari
Pakistan is now the "petri dish of international terrorism", ruling PPP Chairman Asif Ali Zardari has said.
By PTI |
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is now the "petri dish of international terrorism", ruling PPP Chairman Asif Ali Zardari has said blaming the West which "used" the country for its short-term political objectives by investing more in its military rather than its people.
Pakistan is now the "petri dish of international terrorism" and this is "a product of failed international politics and not our creation", Zardari said in his keynote address at the Socialist International Congress at Athens in Greece.
Vowing to root out extremism, Zardari, whose Pakistan People's Party-led alliance came to power after the February 18 elections, declared that madrassas which will not conform to a national curriculum, will be shut down.
"We were exploited under colonialism, manipulated as a tool of Cold War intrigue, made into surrogates for a war against the Soviets in Afghanistan, and when that war was won, Pakistan and the country we liberated were abandoned to the forces of extremism and fanaticism," he said in his speech yesterday.
The world community has paid a "terrible price" for using Pakistan for its short-term political objectives, Zardari said while calling for an international effort to rebuild the economies and infrastructure of the region to eradicate terrorism.
Pakistan could still be converted into a successful model of modernity for 1.3 bn Muslims worldwide and the help of the international community is needed for this, he remarked.
"We can't do it alone. We need the help of the world," he said. "If we succeed, we will contain extremism and terrorism. But if we fail, the world will fail with us."
Pakistan is now the "petri dish of international terrorism" and this is "a product of failed international politics and not our creation", Zardari said in his keynote address at the Socialist International Congress at Athens in Greece.
Vowing to root out extremism, Zardari, whose Pakistan People's Party-led alliance came to power after the February 18 elections, declared that madrassas which will not conform to a national curriculum, will be shut down.
"We were exploited under colonialism, manipulated as a tool of Cold War intrigue, made into surrogates for a war against the Soviets in Afghanistan, and when that war was won, Pakistan and the country we liberated were abandoned to the forces of extremism and fanaticism," he said in his speech yesterday.
The world community has paid a "terrible price" for using Pakistan for its short-term political objectives, Zardari said while calling for an international effort to rebuild the economies and infrastructure of the region to eradicate terrorism.
Pakistan could still be converted into a successful model of modernity for 1.3 bn Muslims worldwide and the help of the international community is needed for this, he remarked.
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"We can't do it alone. We need the help of the world," he said. "If we succeed, we will contain extremism and terrorism. But if we fail, the world will fail with us."
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