Pakistan will not attend the OIC talks if the invitation to India is not rescinded, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told parliamentarians on Friday morning
ISLAMABAD (Pakistan Point News / NNI - 01st March, 2019) Pakistan will not attend the OIC talks if the invitation to India is not rescinded, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told parliamentarians on Friday morning. During a joint session of parliament he said that he had, in line with the House's joint resolution, written to the OIC and said that if the Indian foreign minister remains the guest of honor at the forthcoming OIC inaugural meeting, he would not be in a position to participate in the conference.
He said that while he would not be attending the Council of Foreign Ministers meeting, he would send a lower level official to defend Pakistan's resolutions, many of which are about Indian cruelty and aggression in Kashmir, and ensure that if an attempt is made to give India observer status, it will be blocked.He said that the Turkish foreign minister had also spoken to him and said that the invitation was unacceptable in this situation and that they will play their role.
Russia has offered to provide a platform for talks between Pakistan and India and we are ready to accept, he also told parliamentarians. He said that Pakistan is ready to sit at the table and deescalate matters. He said he had recorded his concerns to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during an earlier visit to Moscow. Now, the foreign minister offered to provide a platform for talks, he said.The UN secretary general has also offered to play a mediators role if both want it.
Pakistan will welcome this, said Qureshi, inviting UN leaders to visit Pakistan and the region to gauge the situation.He said the captured Indian Air Force pilot would be sent back to India as a gesture of peace today (Friday) in the afternoon via the Wagah Border.He also briefed the House on some new developments, including that of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo being briefed on the situation and giving it importance. Qureshi said that during his media briefing in Hanoi yesterday, US President Donald Trump said that it doesn't want instability in the region.
He said he has instructed all officials at Pakistan's diplomatic missions abroad to also work towards de-escalation. He thanked Trump for his statement and said anyone who steps forward to talk about peace and talks about betterment of the region, their words need to be given importance.The foreign minister highlighted voices rising from within India that are opposing the Modi government's policies. The opposition parties released a joint statement in which they said that they think Modi is doing this for politics and to win the election, that he is using the Indian army and its personnel for this, said Qureshi.
Today, some members of the ruling BJP calculated that the strike would increase their popularity enough to get them 22 more seats in their parliament, he said. This is confirming our fears that India is acting to win its election, said the foreign minister.He recalled a statement from parliamentarian Shashi Taroor in which he said the BJP government's vision is not that of India's founding fathers and that it was actually against their vision.
These statements are coming from within India itself, he reiterated.Leader of the Opposition Shehbaz Sharif praised the move to boycott the OIC but said that he wished the government would try harder and ask the UAE to not host the Indian foreign minister. History will bear witness to this that in these conditions she went to the UAE, he cautioned. We must exhaust all options before boycotting, he urged.Former president Asif Ali Zardari said that while the House agreed that the OIC meeting should be boycotted, he didn't.
They're our old friends, Pakistan should engage with them, he said.Disengagement is not a solution. It will drive them [India] further in and us out, he said. Zardari said India is trying to become a super power.Wars are fought by nations, not just armies and the entire nation is always ready but that should be our last resort, not our first resort, he cautioned. This adventurism is for PM Modi's election bid, he said. By God's grace it was foiled and we have managed to come out of it with dignity but we should keep that and not squander it, he advised.
I welcome your move to release the pilot, soft diplomacy is needed now and by doing so you are portraying a softer image in the world, that Pakistan is not a terrorist state, he told the foreign minister.We focus on all surrounding borders and bolster relations with neighboring nations so that they stand by us in difficult times, he said. We must stand together, he urged.Zardari said that while he would have preferred that the foreign minister attend the OIC meeting, go and meet people, do his PR and engage with everyone rather than disengage, he has no choice but to agree with the Houses decision.
But we are a founding nation and have fought wars for this OIC, he said. Today, it is not the same scene, history has moved on and we must acknowledge this changed world, he said. We can't change others but we can change ourselves and renew our thoughts, said the former president.We should interact, talk and ensure we are represented, he said, urging that this should not be left by default. NNI
