Kathmandu, June 21: King Gyanendra Thursday sent “sincere congratulations and best wishes” to General Pervez Musharraf on assuming the office of the President of Pakistan Wednesday, an announcement said. The King hoped bilateral Nepal Pakistan ties will be strengthened during Musharraf’s tenure. The formal greeting tantamounts to Nepali recognition of fresh internal developments in neighbouring Pakistan.
India has also recognized the internal power shift in Pakistan ahead of the General’s impending historical visit to India, reports said. The United States has opposed the consolidation of Musharraf’s power inside Pakistan and pledged to continue sanctions.
The rapprochement between India and Pakistan should help restore the SAARC process suspended in October 1999 after a military take-over in Pakistan and the resumption of a summit of seven South Asian states that was to be held in Kathmandu that year.