White House Statement, March 7
"President Clinton has accepted an invitation to visit Pakistan as part of his upcoming visit to South Asia.
The President expects to address a number of issues of common concern with Pakistan’s leaders. These include a return to civilian, democratic rule, the need to fight terrorism, and measures to avoid a nuclear and missile arms race and prevent conflict in the region.
The President’s decision reflects the importance of making efforts to continue dialogue with an important nation of the region, despite our serious concern about the lack of an elected Government there.
We are working with the Government of Pakistan regarding particulars of the President’s visit."
Source: "Statement by the Press Secretary," The White House, March 7.
Remarks by State Department Spokesperson James Rubin, March 9
"It is not a reward for the President of the United States to stop in Pakistan and meet with the leadership there, when we see that kind of meeting is an appropriate way to try to achieve our national security objectives, including avoiding…the extremely negative consequences of a confrontation between India and Pakistan. I recounted yesterday the extremely important role the President played in being able to avoid a major conflict in Kargil last summer, because he had lines of communication open with both leaders. And that’s something we believe is in the national interest."
Source: US State Department daily briefing, March 9.
© 2000 The Acronym Institute.