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Govt to take up ‘controversial’ Kerry-Lugar clauses with US

* Military, civilian leadership discuss attack on GHQ, full-scale operation in South Waziristan, security situation

By Irfan Ghauri

ISLAMABAD: The top civilian and military leadership of the country decided on Saturday that Pakistan would take up “controversial clauses” of the Kerry-Luger bill with the US government through diplomatic channels.

The decision came at a meeting between President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, army chief Gen Ashfaq Kayani, Foreign Minister Mehmood Qureshi and ISI chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha. A press statement said the leaders discussed the attack on the GHQ and implications of the Kerry-Lugar bill.

“The meeting discussed various aspects of the Kerry-Luger bill. There was unanimity of views … it was decided that the government would take up controversial clauses with the US. It was also decided that the final national response to the bill would be given on the conclusion of a debate in parliament,” said the statement by the prime minister’s media office.

Sources said the foreign minister briefed the meeting on the Kerry-Lugar bill. The participants were told that the government was planning to pass unanimous resolutions in both houses of parliament expressing reservations over the bill. These reservations would be conveyed to the US through diplomatic channels, said the sources. Kayani briefed the meeting on a scale operation in South Waziristan. The sources said the political leadership threw its support behind the army chief over the launch of the operation, the timing and scale of which would be determined by the armed forces.

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