Anglo-Pakistan rift amidst flooding in Pakistan

[-:Undertaker:-]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...m-remarks.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worl...d-victims.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worl...or-claims.html

Pakistan president to challenge David Cameron's 'uncalled for' terrorism remarks.Asif Ali Zardari, the President of Pakistan, will address David Cameron's "uncalled for" remarks relating to Pakistan's stance on terrorism and "put him straight" when the pair meet, according to his officials.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/news...n-UK-trip.html

Mr Zardari, who was in Paris meeting Nicolas Sarkozy on Monday night, told the French President that it was "unfortunate if some people continued to express doubts and misgivings about our will and determination to fight the militants to the finish." According to his office, the Pakistan president told Mr Sarkozy that "No other country in the international coalition has paid such a heavy price in this fight."

The spokesman added: "He said that Cameron's uncalled for remarks and the fact that these were made in India had disappointed the people of Pakistan and it was all the more important that the president's visit to the UK went ahead as planned to raise this and other issues with the British prime minister." "David Cameron has been doing some plain talking. Now Zardari will be doing the plain talking," an official told The Guardian. Mr Zardari arrives in Britain facing accusations that he is using a meeting with David Cameron as a smokescreen for an attempt to shore up his political dynasty, at a time his country is struggling to cope with its worst floods for 80 years.

His decision not to fly home has led to suggestions that his real motive is not the meeting with Mr Cameron, but a rally in Birmingham at which he will help launch his son’s campaign to succeed him. Khalid Mahmood, the Labour MP for Birmingham Perry Bar, suggested that Mr Zardari was visiting Britain for “political reasons” involving his son’s career, and called on him to cancel the trip. Imran Khan, the former cricketer and chairman of the opposition PTI party, joined the growing chorus of voices demanding that Mr Zardari return to Pakistan to take charge of the response to floods that have killed 1,500 and left millions homeless.

Mr Zardari, the widower of Benazir Bhutto, the former Pakistani prime minister, had suggested he might cancel his meeting with Mr Cameron following the Prime Minister’s controversial comments about Pakistan exporting terrorism. However, critics claim that the visit was never in doubt because Mr Zardari, who has faced repeated allegations of corruption and investigations into the source of his estimated £1.1 billion fortune, is desperate to win over British Pakistanis who could make or break his son’s career.

Whilst terrible the floods may be, Pakistan in general is in quite a mess and has been since the departure of General Musharraf as the President of Pakistan. The group that are in power now (some of you may remember the Bhutto incident and the outcry over Musharrafs later term in office) seem to be incapable of running the country properly hence why they now suspect that regions of Pakistan near Afghanistan are under militant/full islamic control. The over-the-top reaction by some in Pakistan just shows how backwards this country is (or has become in the last year or so with the departure of Gen. Musharraf).

Pakistan acts very outraged at Camerons comments that he made in India (which are true afterall) but still accepts around the region of £5m to £10m in British aid. Personally I don't see why we should be sending aid to a country with a seemingly corrupt government (then again look at our class of politicians!), a country which spends billions on nuclear warfare and more to the point; we are giving away money which we do not have. If your family has no money, you do not give to charity - you keep that money for your own family. Will they be so inflamed as to refuse our money? thought not.

State aid in itself I would scrap altogether and hand that back in taxes - then people can choose whether they want to send money to charity. I read a document/study last week on the internet that found that the more money people have, the more charitable they are - maybe we should follow the same line in Great Britain today. Camerons words were (see below); http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-10834909

During his trip to Pakistan's regional rival India last week, Mr Cameron said: "We should be very, very clear with Pakistan that we want to see a strong, stable and democratic Pakistan. "We cannot tolerate in any sense the idea that this country is allowed to look both ways and is able, in any way, to promote the export of terror, whether to India or whether to Afghanistan or anywhere else in the world."

Thoughts on the comments of Cameron?

[Jordy]

I thought Cameron got it spot on, our troops are sacrificing their lives in Afghanistan and the tax payer is paying billions towards the war there and we're offered very little assistance by the Pakistanis. The Taliban just seem to be running across the border to safe-havens in Pakistan and the Pakistanis don't seem to be helping with intelligence relating to terrorism either.

It's very questionable his visit over here too, there's an environmental catastrophe in his country with over a 1000 dead and this morning a Pakistani MP shot dead causing riots with even more deaths. I don't think it's up to Cameron to say he shouldn't be here but I do respect the Labour MP & Lord who have pulled out from meeting him; http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worl...=feeds-newsxml

Also just dug up some news archives to further your point about Musharraf. You don't see that kind of support from the Pakistanis anymore.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/london-bom...ectid=10337235
http://goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/gi_0...-bringing.html

[ifuseekamy]

What better way to prove you're peaceful anti-terrorists than burning effigies of people?