Musharraf, Karzai agree major oil pipeline in co-operation

The Irish Times | 2/10/02 | AFP

[Boyd]

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Musharraf, Karzai agree major oil pipeline in co-operation pact

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"Pipelinestan"

PAKISTAN/AFGHANISTAN: The Pakistani President, Gen Pervez Musharraf, and the Afghan interim leader, Mr Hamid Karzai, agreed yesterday that their two countries should develop "mutual brotherly relations" and co-operate "in all spheres of activity" - including a proposed gas pipeline from Central Asia to Pakistan via Afghanistan.

"We have agreed unanimously ... on working together to develop strong brotherly co-operation, brotherly relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan in all spheres of activity," Gen Musharraf said after their talks.

Gen Musharraf said Pakistan will provide $10 million to the Afghan interim government to pay for government outlays. About 200,000 employees of the Afghan government have not been paid a salary for over six months by the ousted Taliban, and the interim Afghan government has maintained that paying them was the most urgent government priority.

Mr Karzai, who arrived in Islamabad earlier yesterday for a one-day visit, said he and Gen Musharraf discussed the proposed Central Asian gas pipeline project "and agreed that it was in the interest of both countries". Pakistan and several multinational companies, including the California-based Unocal Corp and Bridas S.A. of Argentina, have been toying with the idea of constructing a 1,600-km pipeline from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan to growing natural gas markets in Pakistan and, potentially, India. But the project has failed to materialise because of the civil war in Afghanistan and the reluctance of the financial institutions to finance it.

Gen Musharraf said he told Mr Karzai that Pakistan and Afghanistan are bound together by common geography, faith, history and culture.

"Pakistan is extremely interested in having a peaceful, stable, united, progressive Afghanistan as its brotherly neighbour because it does not only serve the purpose of peace in the region but it also serves the economic interest of this entire region," he said.

Mr Karzai said he and Gen Musharraf "look forward to a tremendously good future. That future can be made certain by respecting each other's territorial integrity and freedom," he said, adding that he was grateful to Gen Musharraf "for wishing the Afghan people the unity, the independence, the progress that Afghans so badly need."

The two leaders also discussed the repatriation of over two million Afghan refugees living in Pakistan since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. Mr Karzai thanked Pakistan for having given "a tremendous welcome" to Afghan refugees. "But they have a home to go to, and that home is Afghanistan.

"We would be grateful if our brothers in Pakistan allowed us time to prepare for that, so that our refugees can return home in tranquillity and dignity," he said.

Meanwhile police hunting a former English public schoolboy suspected of kidnapping an American reporter have recovered e-mails from another suspect's computer.

Investigators had hoped to rescue Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl before Gen Musharraf left last night for talks with President Bush in Washington.

[Boyd]

" Karzai found no contradiction between his ties with the Americans and his support for the Taleban movement as of 1994, when the Americans had - secretly and through the Pakistanis - supported the Taleban's assumption of power to put an end to the civil war and the actual partition of Afghanistan due to the failure of Borhanoddin Rabbani's experience in ruling the country. At the time, Karzai worked as a consultant for the huge US oil group Unocal, which had supported the Taleban movement and sought to construct a pipeline to transport oil and gas from the Islamic republics of Central Asia to Pakistan via Afghanistan. However, Karzai's relationship with the Taleban did not last long, since he moved away from the movement immediately after it assumed power in 1996 and turned down the movement's offer to appoint him as its ambassador to the United Nations. "

The Financial Times from BBC monitoring 12/15/2001

[IRtorqued]

heads up.

[Free the USA]

bump

[Wallaby]

Hey stranger!

[Marianne]

Pakistan and several multinational companies, including the California-based Unocal Corp and Bridas S.A. of Argentina, have been toying with the idea of constructing a 1,600-km pipeline from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan to growing natural gas markets in Pakistan and, potentially, India. But the project has failed to materialise because of the civil war in Afghanistan and the reluctance of the financial institutions to finance it.
No comment.

[Boyd]

"...According to Alexander's Oil & Gas Connections (10/12/98), Enron signed a contract in 1996, giving it rights to explore 11 gas fields in Uzbekistan, a project costing $1.3 billion. The goal was to sell gas to the Russian markets, and link to Unocal's southern export pipeline crossing Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan. Turkmenistan (where Enron's project was based) and Azerbaijan are closely allied with Israeli military intelligence. Yosef Maiman, a former Israeli intelligence agent, is the official negotiator for energy development projects in Turkmenistan.

Enron recently conducted feasibility studies for a $2.5 billion trans-Caspian gas pipeline to be built jointly with General Electric and Bechtel. Enron's goal was to link this pipeline to another line through Afghanistan... "

[Osinski]

What! A Pakistan and Afghanistan pipeline to move Caspian Sea oil to the gulf? Well. Isn't it just uncanny the way these things work out. Enron involvement? How coinkydink.

[mafree]

Bump- one more time, follow the oil.

[Aaron_A]

(OPIC and EX-IM bank)
Too bad, we're taking your money...sucker!

[crazykatz]

The NWO dripping in the blood of innocents and oil...who says blood and oil do not mix.

[philman_36]

Didn't you hear? This is not about oil! and in case you forget that we'll continue stressing that all important fact /sarcasm

[Jackie222]

bump......

[KirkandBurke]

Isn't interesting that Herat and Kandahar were two very important stategic goals of the military action? What's that old saying? "War is politics commerce by other means."

It was never about the burkhas.

Welcome to Sunny Afghanistan!