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‘I will clear up misperceptions about Waziristan and Women’s Bill’:

Pakistan is stable, I am relaxed and confident: Musharraf

* President says no patch-up with Taliban
* Manmohan and Musharraf agree to narrow differences, strengthen convergences

By Rana Qaisar and Khalid Hasan

NEW YORK: President Pervez Musharraf has categorically ruled out any possibility of a “patch up” with what he called “fighting Taliban”.

The president, who flew into New York on Saturday evening from Havana, told Pakistani journalists at an impromptu briefing that he would clear up “misperceptions and apprehensions” arising here from the recent peace deal, which he said, was not with the Taliban, but with the tribal elders of the area.

“There has been no deal with the Taliban. Our accord is with tribal elders,” he said, adding that it was a process launched and carried forward by a tribal jirga. “There has been no agreement with the Taliban nor will there be any with them in the future.” The president said there were certain apprehensions that Pakistan was backing out of the war against terrorism. “This is furthest from the truth,” he said, explaining that military action could not provide a final solution to the Taliban problem.

He said he would also take this opportunity to address similar misgivings about the government’s negotiations with the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) on proposed amendments to existing laws on women’s protection. He said the government was not backtracking on women’s rights. “What we’re doing is to reach an agreed solution. In both cases, there is a need to clear up apprehensions and I will remove all such apprehensions,” he said.

To a question about the domestic political situation, President Musharraf said he was confident that there would be no instability in Pakistan. “The fact that I am roaming around shows how confident and relaxed I am,” he said, adding that there was no problem in Pakistan. “This is my longest trip and it shows my confidence.”

About his meeting with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, he said the peace process won. “The success of our meeting is of great satisfaction to both sides and augurs well for the resolution of all outstanding issues,” he said.

He cautioned against interpreting the meeting in terms of “winners and losers”, saying such terminology would not help the peace process move forward. He emphasised that the meeting’s importance lay in the “forward direction” it had given to bilateral negotiations between Pakistan and India. “We didn’t go into the specifics of solutions,” he explained, “but the fact is that we need to address all bilateral disputes, including Jammu and Kashmir.”

He said he had again invited Singh to visit Pakistan and “he is very keen to”. He hoped that when Singh did come to Pakistan, it would lead to something substantial. Asked if any timeframe had been agreed for secretary-level talks, he said they would be held “expeditiously”, but the dates were still to be set.

“We agreed to narrow divergences and strengthen convergences. The road forward is the willingness to discuss and resolve the Jammu and Kashmir dispute,” he said.

About his meeting with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, the president said he would discuss international issues, including UN reforms.

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