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Pakistan is the only member of the UN that does not recongnize  the independence of Armenia  due  to  the occupation of Azerbaijani terrirories. How would you explain such particular support for Azerbaijan from your country? "We share common historical, cultural and social values. Our problems are similar: Kashmir is occupied by India and Nagornyy Karabakh by Armenia," says the Pakistani ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to Azerbaijan, Inayat Ullah Kakar. This served as an important factor in the rapproachement between the two countries. In an interview with our magazine, the ambassador also answered a number of other questions concerning Azerbaijani-Pakistani relations and the situation in Pakistan and the Muslim world as a whole.

- Pakistan's support for the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan is obvious. To what extent  can Muslim  countries allied with Azerbaijan, including  Pakistan, contribute to the resolution of the Naqornyy Karabakh issue?

- Pakistan is a country of some 180 million people. With globalized world and eroding boundaries, societies are becoming multi-ethnic. The convergence of different cultures and ethnicities can create a fascinating mix attracting tourists and developing the economy. This can help the economic and cultural development of a country. However, the downside of having multi-ethnic entities in a state is that there is a risk of disenchantment of a marginalized community which can negatively affect statehood.

- Pakistan is considered to be the only Muslim country that possesses nuclear weapons and most powerful for its military opportunities. What  does it means for your country?

- Pakistan has history of troubled relations with its neighbour India. We had wars in 1948, 1965 and 1971. In traditional sense, we cannot match Indian forces man to man, due to the sheer size of their economic resources and population. So we had to resort to other alternatives; going nuclear was foremost. It may be mentioned that India was the one which started nuclear race in South Asia, with first nuclear tests in 1974. Ours is a defensive nuclear programme, which is a vital part of our defence doctrine.

- Why  can't Muslim contries  become a dominant power in the world?

- The unfortunate reality of the Muslim world is that on paper we are strong countries endowed with excellent natural resources. But on ground, our position in geopolitics is very weak. The biggest reason I believe is the lack of modern education in the Muslim world. Generally speaking and with a few exceptions, the Muslim countries have a poor literacy rate as they do not accord top priority to modern scientific and technological education.

- How  is  Pakistan's  relationship  with its  close neighbours? I mean India and Afghanistan.

- Pakistan is always guided by the principles of peaceful coexistence with its neighbours. There have been ups and downs in our relations with India and Afghanistan. And since the start of 2011, Pakistan and India have resumed the peace process stalled after the 2008 Mumbai attacks. A liberal visa regime between India and Pakistan became operational, and a Pakistani cricket team played in India after years. In sports, art and entertainment, the mutual public contacts were also reinforced. All of these promising developments are once again in danger of becoming a casualty of India's aggressive attitude towards Pakistan. Recently, tension at Pak-India Line of Contact increased due to exchange of fire between our forces and resultant casualties. Pakistan has proposed to hold an impartial enquiry by the UN but the Indian side has rejected this offer. We believe that the resolution of the Kashmir issue will be able to bring a long-term peace and stability to South Asia. 

- As a fomer colony of Great Britain, how is Pakistan's present  realitionship with this country?

- Pakistan has very good relations with the UK. A host of institutional linkages and cooperative mechanisms exist between the two countries. Economically, the UK is the second largest bilateral overseas investor in Pakistan and one of the biggest trading partners. About ?1.2 billion of trade flows between the two countries annually, and it may double by 2015 through enhanced institutional arrangements. The British Foreign Mission in Pakistan is the UK's second largest in the world. In the UK, there is a million strong overseas community of British citizens of Pakistani origin with strong family and national bonds with the motherland. British Pakistanis also play an important role in UK politics by populating important constituencies or becoming members of the House of Commons and House of Lords. 

- If Benazir Bhutto, who the first woman in history who headed Pakistan, had not been assassinated  and had continued her political activity, what kind of changes could have  happened in the political scene of your country?

- Benazir Bhutto was a born leader, a visionary. With her demise, Pakistan had to face incalculable loss. However, President Asif Ali Zardari, her husband, is also keeping up her vision of democratic and prosperous Pakistan. Under his leadership, democracy is strengthening as after completion of 5 years, parliamentary elections are scheduled to take place this year. Our electronic and print media is the freest in the world. Other institutions like judiciary are also functioning independently. So overall, things look pretty promising for the development of Pakistan.

- When do you think Pakistan will be described as a fully stable country?

- Unfortunately, war on terror has taken a heavy toll on Pakistan's economy and law and order. We had to face financial loss to the tune of US $ 70 billion, apart from 35,000 precious lives lost as a result of terrorist attacks in our country. We are hopeful that as the situation in Afghanistan improves, things will radically take a positive turn in Pakistan as well.