NEW YORK, Feb 20 (APP): Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, left for Islamabad Wednesday night after a three-day visit to New York during which he participated in a high-level meeting of the UN Security Council on multilateralism and global governance, convened by China.
“We called for the reform of not only multilateral political institutions but also international financial bodies, and forcefully conveyed Pakistan’s narrative on key issues such as Kashmir and Palestine,” he told U.S.-based Pakistani journalists at a press conference, winding up this visit.
“The continued inequities of the global financial system have further aggravated today’s crises,” the DPM/FM noted.
During his visit, Senator Dar also addressed a meeting of OIC Ambassadors at UN Headquarters and held talks with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as well as with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who presided over the Security Council deliberations as China holds the presidency of the the15-member body his month.
In addition, the DPM/FM interacted with top officials of Saudi Arabia and Hungary on key issues including the Middle East crisis, the grave humanitarian situation in Gaza and the reconstruction of the devastated enclave.
He also addressed a well-attended meeting of the Pakistani community, and answered their questions about their problems, urging them to send remittances back home and invest in projects in their homeland.
In the course of his speech to the Security Council, the DPM/FM underlined some factors intensifying the crises such as the acute suffering of the people under foreign occupation, great power rivalries; a renewed global arms race; the increasing weaponization of cyberspace and outer space, and new and destructive technologies.
He said Pakistan had rejected proposals for relocation of Gazans to neighbouring countries — Egypt and Jordan — and for creating a Palestine state within Saudi Arabia, asserting that Gaza belongs to its people and they must continue to live there forever.
Replying to a question about the escalating cross-border TTP attacks, Senator Dar said Pakistan had repeatedly urged the Afghan Interim Government to reign in the terrorist outfits and will continue to press them.
He said he was planning to visit Kabul to remind Afghan leaders of their international obligation not to allow their territory to be used for attacks against Pakistan.
Senator Dar said that the menace had almost been eliminated from the country in 2018, however, due to faulty policies of the previous government it had resurfaced. In this regard, he said that a large number of TTP fighters were allowed to enter into Pakistan, and that was the main factor behind the ongoing terrorist acts. The government, he said, was determined to wipe out terrorists from Pakistan.
In addition to security concerns, Senator Dar stressed Pakistan’s humanitarian commitment to Afghanistan.
He reaffirmed Pakistan’s desire to provide support to the millions of destitute people in the neighbouring country, emphasizing the need for economic development, particularly through connectivity projects linking Central Asia and Pakistan via Afghanistan.
“We are committed to promoting Afghanistan’s economic development, including through implementing connectivity projects between Central Asia and Pakistan through Afghanistan,” he said.
On another question, the DPM/FM said that although no contact had taken place with the Trump administration, the relations between Pakistan and the United States were good.
Pakistan, he added, was not under pressure from Washington and would not accept any pressure if it was applied.
The DPM/FM was seen off by Ambassador Munir Akram, permanent representative of Pakistan to the UN; Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, alternative permanent representative; Ambassador to the United States, Rizwan Saeed Sheikh; Ambassador Usman Jadoon, deputy permanent representative to the UN; Consul General in New York, Aamer Ahmed Atozai, and other officials.
APP/ift