LONDON: Britain will stand with Pakistan what ever challenges South Asian country faces as both countries have strong bilateral relations and are linked together by shared history, cultural and economic ties.
Speaking at a largely attended reception hosted by High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hasan here Wednesday evening to celebrate Pakistan Day, the British Home Secretary Theresa May spoke of the difficult times for Pakistan but assured of her country's support and assistance to tackle them.
She mentioned the last summer's floods and said:" The British-Pakistani community led the response to those floods but the tragedy touched the hearts of all of the British public whatever their background.
"The terrorists seek not only to attack the Pakistani Government but also to attack the very principle of democracy, the people of Pakistan, their freedom and their future," she stated adding that Britain recognise the sacrifices of both civilian and military that Pakistan is making in the fight against terrorism.
She also spoke of a long shared history and a future and said they are building on the many bonds including extensive business links, close cultural connections and deep family ties.
"There are now one million British Pakistanis in the UK. At any one time there are around 80,000 British nationals in Pakistan. There are 1.4 million journey between Pakistan and the UK each year and the bilateral trade now totals well over one billion pounds sterling per year."
The British Home Secretary stressed working together on many issues common to each country including trade, business relationships, defence, counter-terrorism, drugs, organised crime, migration and visas and said what happens in Pakistan, matters to the UK and vice versa.
At the same time, she added: "We enjoy good working relationships on so many of these issues."
In his welcome address, the Pakistan High Commissioner expressed great satisfaction that Pakistan-UK relations have always been cordial and are gaining strength with each passing day.
"Our cooperation is multifaceted and encompasses economic, cultural, defence and security issues. We are closely cooperating in counter-terrorism efforts. Our bilateral trade is on the rise," said Mr.Hasan.
Speaking of developments in Pakistan since 2008 Parliamentary elections, he pointed out that the country has come a long way in strengthening democracy with the restoration of the supremacy of the Constitution, sovereignty of the Parliament, rule of law, independence of judiciary, unshackled the media, maximised provincial autonomy.
"Pakistan is today a vibrant and functioning democracy with a free media, independent judiciary and a dynamic civil society," said Mr.Hasan.
He expressed gratitude to the British government and its people for having stood by Pakistan in its most difficult time, both in war against extremism and in the recent devastating floods.
The High Commissioner also noted that that Pakistan-UK relations are gaining strength with each passing day with multifaceted co-operation encompassing economic, cultural, defence and security issues.
He also spoke of the presence of 10 British Pakistanis as members of the British Parliament and of Baroness Sayeeda Warsi as a cabinet minister and Chair of the Conservative Party and said these are just a few examples of the greater participation of the people of Pakistani heritage in the mainstream of British life.
Hasan lauded the contribution of British-Pakistanis to the UK GDP to the tune of over 33 billion pounds sterling and expressed confidence that they will continue to play their important role in the progress of both the countries.
The High Commissioner also thanked the British Government for extending Pakistan its strong and unwavering support for market access in the EU.
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