Posted on 09/25/2001 9:38:37 AM PDT by JohnHuang2
ISLAMABAD, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Pakistan said on Tuesday it would retain diplomatic ties with Afghanistan's Taliban rulers, the only country in the world still to do so, in order to give them a window to the outside world.
"We should maintain contact, at least there should be one country who ought to be able to have an access to them, to be able to engage them," President Pervez Musharraf told reporters.
Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday it had cut all relations with the Taliban for continuing to harbour "terrorists." The United Arab Emirates, the only other state with relations before the September 11 attacks in America, severed ties on Saturday.
Pakistan said on Monday, however, that it had temporarily withdrawn all diplomats and staff from its embassy in Kabul and consulates in three other cities amid fears of possible U.S. military strikes against the Taliban for sheltering Saudi-born dissident Osama bin Laden.
Bin Laden is the prime U.S. suspect in the devastating suicide hijack air attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington.
But Musharraf said the Taliban needed some form of contact with the outside world.
"Maybe this could be a good requirement," he said after meeting a high-level European Union delegation.
"Therefore, I do not really see much of a requirement of breaking diplomatic relations with the Taliban."
His words were echoed by his foreign minister.
"Maybe we serve as means of communication between the world and the Taliban," Abdul Sattar told a news conference when asked if Pakistan would break off ties.
Pakistan, which has assured full support to the United States in what it calls a new war against terrorism, has urged the Taliban to hand over bin Laden, but to no avail.
The Taliban control about 95 percent of Afghanistan and the remaining five percent is held by the Northern Alliance, whose administration was driven out of Kabul in 1996 but still occupies the Afghan seat at the United Nations.
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