London, Oct 12 : Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari asked US President Barack Obama to stop Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani from staging a coup to oust the weak civilian government, days after Osama bin Laden’s killing in Abbottabad, according to an exchange of secret messages revealed by a British newspaper.

Islamabad, Sep 30 - Tennis star Sania Mirza and her cricketer husband Shoaib Malik Thursday met with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari to discuss launching a fund-raising campaign for the flood victims in the country.

The couple expressed grief over the devastation caused by the floods in Pakistan, the official APP news agency reported. They met him at Aiwan-e-Sadr (his official residence here).

They told the president that they would play exhibition matches both within and outside the country to help raise funds for the affected people.

Islamabad, Sep 2 : President Asif Ali Zardari and Afghan President Hamid Karzai have reviewed bilateral relations and the regional situation, it was reported here.

The two leaders met in Tajikistan capital Dushanbe on the sidelines of the third Quadrilateral Summit of Tajikistan, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Russia.

Zardari and Karzai exchanged views on the situation in Afghanistan, geo-strategic scenario after the withdrawal of the US troops from Afghanistan, bilateral cooperation in fighting the menace of narco-trade, extremism and terrorism.

Islamabad, Aug 27 : Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari has urged the business community to suggest ways for overcoming the country's economic crisis.

Zardari Friday told a delegation of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) that the business community should help the government restore confidence of the people in the strength and vitality of the national economy.

Islamabad, Aug 26 : President Asif Ali Zardari will visit China from Aug 30 to Sep 1 to take part in an exposition and meet the Chinese vice premier.

Zardari's visit comes close on the heels of Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar's trip to China.

Foreign Office Spokesperson Tehmina Janjua Thursday said Zardari would meet Chinese Vice Premier Li Kequang at Urumqi during his stay there. The China-Eurasia Expo is being held in Urumqi.

Zardari will also meet leaders of Chinese corporate sector in Urumqi, she added.

Islamabad, August 24 : Islamabad has cautioned Washington that any move to reduce US aid would not only ruin Pakistan’s already troubled economy, but also hurt the United States’ image in the country.

Islamabad, Aug 23 : President Asif Ali Zardari has summoned a provincial minister who lost his cool and told Interior Minister Rehman Malik not to frequently visit violence-hit Karachi. Malik retorted he won't visit the port city, if that's what the minister wanted.

Zardari Tuesday summoned Sindh Senior Minister Zulfiqar Mirza to Islamabad, reported Geo News.

During the Sindh cabinet meeting, Zulfikar Mirza became angry and told Rehman Malik to stay in Islamabad and leave Karachi to the provincial setup.

According to the authorities, Pakistan's president called an acid-throwing attack on three young girls "barbaric" and demanded provincial authorities find the suspects.

Pakistan's The Nation newspaper has reported that three sisters, ages 20, 14 and 8, were targeted Thursday in the town of Kalat and had acid thrown in their faces. All three were rushed to a local hospital, where one of the victims was in serious condition.

An application challenging President Asif Ali Zardari's eligibility to contest the presidential election has been dismissed by Pakistan Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Hamid Ali Mirza in light of the Supreme Court's detailed verdict on the controversial amnesty law, the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO).

Mirza said in his judgment," In the circumstances, as no prima facie case has been made out by the petitioner his petition, being not maintainable, is dismissed."

The Pakistani Law Ministry looks determined to block the reopening of Swiss corruption cases against President Asif Zardari and others, despite being warned by the Supreme Court about the implementation of the NRO verdict.

NAB chairman is facing the wrath of the Supreme Court for not implementing the two-month-old NRO verdict, reported The News.

Law Ministry is sitting on the issue of reopening of foreign cases and is not responding to NAB’s request on the matter.
 

Washington, Jan : An American newspaper columnist has described the failure of campaigns to remove Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani as “good news”, saying that their ouster would have hampered efforts to fight the militants.

Washington, Jan. 9 : Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has warned that delay in the dispensation of international aid could force Pakistan to cut development spending, which in turn could be a “setback for the war on terror.”

“Given the severity of the internal security challenge. It is critical that the economy is provided a strong stimulus as quickly as possible,” the Daily Times quoted Zardari, as saying.

In an article in the Foreign Affairs magazine, Zardari said that Pakistan is making concerted efforts to stabilise the economy and contain militancy, but world powers must step up support for the country’s government.

He added that the country was paying a heavy price for sharing a border with Afghanistan.

Islamabad, Jan. 8 : President Asif Ali Zardari has reiterated the demand for transfer of US drone technology to Pakistan so that Islamabad could itself hit high-value targets in its Tribal Areas.

“Persuade the US policymakers to give drone technology to Pakistan so that militants could be targeted by Pakistani security forces themselves rather than foreign troops which raise the question of sovereignty,” The Dawn quoted Zardari, as saying during his meeting with US Senator John McCain.

Islamabad, Jan. 8 : Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has allowed the country’s military to carry out air strikes on the identified Taliban havens located in the intricate mountain terrains in Tribal Areas.

During his meeting with Pakistani Army Chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani on Thursday, Zardari, in his capacity as Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, approved the coordinated efforts of the armed forces against militants.

New Delhi, Jan 6 : A pro-independence group Wednesday condemned the police assault on its leaders in Pakistani Kashmir, who were opposing President Asif Ali Zardari's visit to the "disputed region".

Police allegedly assaulted dozens of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) leaders in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani Kashmir, Tuesday when they were holding "peaceful" protests and were objecting to Zardari's trip to the region which is a subject of dispute between India and Pakistan..

Islamabad, Jan. 6 : President Asif Ali Zardari has said that Pakistan is ready to wage a thousand-year war with India over the Kashmir dispute.

The Daily Times quoted Zardari as saying that this was a war of ideologies and would last for generations.

Addressing a joint session of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Assembly and the Kashmir Council, Zardari said democratic governments had played a key role in moving forward on the Kashmir dispute.

Islamabad, Jan. 6 : While all the ministers of Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani's cabinet have agreed to face power cuts as part of an electricity load shedding exercise, the quarters of President Asif Ali Zardari have refused to be part of the exercise, citing security risks.

Now Zardari is immune from power outages for even an iota of a second, The Nation reports.

Islamabad, Jan. 6 : Pakistan’s parliamentary committee on constitutional reforms has agreed to clip the president’s powers to appoint the Chief Election Commissioner.

According to the Dawn, the committee, which has been reviewing the constitution articles for almost the past five months, has agreed that appointment of the CEC would be made through a joint parliamentary committee, as envisaged in the Charter of Democracy.

Karachi, Jan. 5 : President Asif Ali Zardari has clarified that Pakistan was a peace-loving country, and had no intention of participating in an arms race in South Asia.

His remarks came while he was addressing a passing-out parade of the Pakistan Naval Academy (PNA).

“Our desire for peace must not be taken as a sign of weakness. Our forces are ready to meet all the challenges and guard [the country] against all external and internal threats,” the Daily Times quoted Zardari, as saying.

Lahore, Jan. 5 : Labelling the elected assemblies as his “political weapons,” Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said that he would “foil all conspiracies” through his weaponry.

“We are politicians, and will solve all the problems in a political manner,” the Daily Times quoted Zardari, as saying.