ISLAMABAD (AFP) – EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana pledged Monday full support for Pakistan as it deals with the resettlement of over two million people displaced by battles against the Taliban.

Solana visited a refugee camp in northwest Pakistan and praised the country's efforts in dealing with the displacement of 1.9 million people, the vast majority of whom have been made homeless by fighting since late April.
“I was very, very impressed by the manner in which this complicated operation has been handled,” Solana told a joint news conference with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, describing it as “work well done”.
“I have seen already today families returning and I think that it is very very important good news, Solana said.
The European Union had contributed more than 150 million euros and would continue to support Pakistan as it deals with one of its largest migrations in history, Solana added.
“We will continue to be engaged in this battle which is very, very important for your country and not only important for your country but important for everyone.”
Qureshi urged the European Union to allow greater market access to countries afflicted by terror, saying the Pakistani economy had suffered losses of 35 billion dollars since joining the US-led “war on terror” in late 2001.
“What we are demanding is market access on more favourable terms,” Qureshi said, adding that Pakistan-EU trade stood at 10 billion dollars.
At a summit attended by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari last month, senior EU officials promised to study future ways to boost commerce with the regime in Pakistan, with the ultimate aim of opening a free trade area.
Solana said he would visit Afghanistan on Tuesday after holding talks with Zardari and Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.
Photo: Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi (R) watches as European Union Foreign Policy chief Javier Solana addresses a press conference in Islamabad. (AFP/Farooq Naeem)