PCNS: Nato supply debate continues today

ISLAMABAD: The Parliamentary Committee on National Security (PCNS) will meet today (Tuesday) to further deliberate the issues like Nato supplies, Geo News reported.

Earlier on Monday the PCNS met here to evolve a consensus on the reshaped draft for the new terms of engagement with the United States and decided to adopt the proposals of the PML-Q, including a complete ban on military supplies through the Nato supply lines, linking of non-lethal Nato supplies with halting the drone attacks and no support to the United States if it attacked Iran.

The PML-N boycotted the meeting to register its protest against the recent hike in the prices of petroleum products. The PCNS meeting was chaired by Committee chairman Senator Raza Rabbani and was attended by eight members out of 13. The meeting decided that the PML-N would be approached with a request to end its boycott. Sources say Raza Rabbani has been tasked by the committee to contact the PML-N to persuade it to attend Tuesday's meeting. Sources also indicated that Raza Rabbani had already contacted Sardar Mehtab Abbassi in this regard, as Senator Ishaq Dar was out of the country.

The committee decided that only those clauses will be discussed on which the opposition had reservations while others on which there was a consensus would not be discussed. While the JUI -F remained firm on its stand i.e. complete suspension of Nato supplies, Senator Mushahid Hussain termed the meeting productive and said parliament now had the historic opportunity to set the national security agenda. He said politicians always complained that decisions were taken in closed-door meetings but now the national security policy was being formulated in parliament.

"It is time for politicians to come out of the shadows of unseen fears and represent the people's emotions through this opportunity. This is the time for parliament to show leadership," he added.