Pak Cabinet's Defence Committee renews offer of full cooperation with India

Islamabad, Dec.9 (ANI): The Defence Committee of the Cabinet (DCC) has decided to renew its offer of full co-operation with India, including intelligence-sharing, assistance in investigations and the formation of a joint commission, and vowed not to allow Pakistani soil to be used for terrorist activity against anyone.

The meeting of the DCC was held on Monday and was presided over by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani at the Prime Minister's House. It was the first in nine years that it had met.

Though India has been blaming Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba for the attacks, the DCC said it was satisfied with the preparedness of the armed forces to defend Pakistan.

According to the Daily Times, Gilani directed all Pakistani departments to continue investigations on the basis of information so far shared between India and Pakistan.

The committee agreed that the country's actions in this context should be in line with Pakistani law.

Sources said the committee discussed the prevailing security situation in detail and relations with India in the wake of the Mumbai attacks. It also discussed a controversial telephone call purportedly made by the Indian foreign minister to President Asif Ali Zardari.

The sources also said that Inter-Services Intelligence chief Lt. Gen. Shuja Pasha briefed the meeting on the security situation.

The top political and military leadership attended the talks.

"Pakistan rejects terrorism in all forms and manifestations, and recognizes that action against terrorism is integral to its core interests," Information Minister Sherry Rehman told reporters after the DCC meeting.

She said the committee was of the view that South Asia's security and stability was in the best interests of the people of the region.

"It is therefore imperative to proactively defuse the prevailing tensions (with India)," she said.

Those who attended the meeting include Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, National Security Adviser Major General (r) Mehmood Ali Durrani, Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Chairman General Tariq Majid and Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani. (ANI)