'Pak entry into ARF to boost Regional security'
AFP, Jakarta
Pakistan's admission Friday to the Asia-Pacific's only security forum is expected to ease tensions in South Asia over its rivalry with nuclear-capable neighbour India, an official said yesterday. Pakistan will formally become the 24th member of the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) when the grouping meets on Friday in Jakarta. India, which had initially blocked Pakistan's entry, in May dropped its opposition after receiving assurances that bilateral issues such as Kashmir would not be raised in the forum. "This is very important for Pakistan because we have been trying to forge closer relations with Southeast Asian nations, and this will facilitate that," Masood Khan, spokesman for Pakistan's foreign office, told AFP. Acceptance into ARF would "act as a catalyst to promoting peace" in South Asia, Khan said. Pakistan is "interested in seeing peace and stability in the region because what happens in South Asia has a direct and indirect effect on Southeast Asia," he said.
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