We have a range of documents avaliable from this Briefing:

The Briefing:
Opening Speech by H.E. Mr. Tariq Fatemi (pdf)

Remarks by other SAARC Ambassadors (pdf)

Q&A session transcript (pdf)

Briefing Photographs

Background Documents:
Islamabad Declaration (pdf)

SAFTA Declaration (pdf)

Social Charter (pdf)

SAARC Terrorism Protocol (pdf)

Outcomes and Implications of the SAARC Summit in Islamabad
Thursday 22nd  January, 2004, European Institute for Asian Studies

Guest Speaker:
H.E. Mr. Tariq Fatemi, Ambassador of Pakistan to the European Union
On behalf of the Chair of the SAARC

With the presence of
H.E. Mr. P.K. Singh, Ambassador of India to the EU
H.E. Mr. Maudud Ali, Ambassador of Bangladesh to the EU
H.E. Mr. Narayan S. Thapa, Ambassador of Nepal to the EU
H.E. Mr. C.R. Jayasinghe, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the EU

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Opening Speech:

H.E. Mr. Tariq Fatemi, Ambassador of Pakistan to the European Union, on behalf of the Chair of the SAARC
[Abridged Version] - Download Full Version (pdf)

The 12th SAARC Summit, held in Islamabad from 4 to 6 January 2004, was ground-breaking on two fronts. On the bilateral front, the meeting of the South Asian family provided the perfect backdrop for a warm and productive dialogue between President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, at the conclusion of which the two sides agreed on the resumption of a “Composite Dialogue”, leading “to peaceful settlement of all bilateral issues, including Jammu and Kashmir, to the satisfaction of both sides”. On the multilateral front, the Framework Agreement on South Asian Free Trade Area and the SAARC Social Charter were signed.

The Summit itself was truly historic. All the leaders in attendance were conscious of the growing inter-dependence within and amongst nations and regions in an increasingly globalized world. There was a realization that, in a region containing over a billion and a half predominantly poor people, peace and progress must and should remain their greatest expectation. Politics may be divorced from economics, but the imperatives of geo-economics can no longer be ignored either.

The major outcomes of the Summit are summarized in the Islamabad Declaration, adopted by the Summit. Its most notable achievements include:

1, The signing of the Framework Agreement on South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) under which trade tariffs between member states would be reduced by the beginning of 2006, paving way for increased intra-regional trade.

2, The signing of the SAARC Social Charter which aims at bringing the much needed social change in the living conditions of South Asians, over 30 percent of whom live below the poverty line.

3, The Plan of Action on Poverty Alleviation, prepared by the SAARC Ministers of Finance and Planning was adopted to provide a concrete macro framework for national and regional efforts to address all issues related to poverty in a meaningful manner.

4, The leaders agreed that a study on South Asian Energy Cooperation, including the concept of an Energy Ring needed to be undertaken by the Working Group on Energy.
Member-states agreed to look closely at the prospects of setting up a South Asian Development Bank.

5, The year 2004 was declared as SAARC Awareness year in order to promote awareness of and prevention from HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and other serious communicable diseases.
The signing of the Additional Protocol to the SAARC Regional Convention on Combating Terrorism was a further manifestation of the Summit’s commitment to eliminate terrorism from South Asia.

There seems to be a realization that SAARC should not be subject to the volatility of the Sub-continent – rather it should itself prove a stabilizing element to bilateral relationships. SAARC needs to become a dynamic organization, on lines similar to the EU and ASEAN. The political will to do so appears forthcoming now, and it augurs well for the future of the organization.

Any discussion of the SAARC Summit would be incomplete, without mentioning the understanding reached between Pakistan and India, at its sidelines.  Although technically not a part of the Summit, it was the Summit’s biggest story.

This is precisely the reason such regional summits are so important – they provide the leaders with an opportunity to come together without pressures that accompany a bilateral Summit. This freedom provides an atmosphere conducive to major developments. Prime Minister Vajpayee demonstrated statesmanship when he agreed to turn the “Courtesy calls” into substantive meetings and then to the language of a statement that confirms resumption of the composite dialogue, on all issues, including Kashmir. We now look forward to the process actually starting a meaningful and result-oriented dialogue that can lead to the settlement of all outstanding issues, between India and Pakistan.

The most sensitive aspect to be considered by both sides is that the people of Kashmir must not be ignored, or sidelined, at any cost as they are the final arbiters of their destiny. An imposed decision will not be acceptable to the Kashmiri people and their inclusion in the peace process is at the root of a lasting peace in the sub-continent

South Asia, home to one fifth of humanity, is currently out of step with other regions of the world that were able to transcend their differences and disputes, and embark on a steady course to economic growth and development. By building the right synergy in our national endeavours, we could also put our region on the path to economic development.

The biggest challenge for the SAARC leadership now is to implement the understandings reached in Islamabad. The true significance of the Summit was the delineation of a future-oriented road map for SAARC that, if implemented, will finally place the region on the track to peace, growth and development.

Thank you.
H.E. Mr. Tariq Fatemi, Ambassador of Pakistan to the European Union, on behalf of the Chair of the SAARC
[Abridged Version] - Download Full Version (pdf)


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