ISLAMABAD: Foreign Office said Thursday that Pakistan had no desire to escalate tension with India and described New Delhi's belligerent attitude as a threat to regional peace and security.
Speaking at her weekly media briefing, Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui said that the latest Indian action to reduce the Pakistani High Commission's staff strength by 50 percent was a part of India's desperate attempts to divert attention from its state-terrorism, and worst human rights violations in Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJ&K).
She said that Pakistan has been consistently sensitizing the world community that irresponsible policies of the BJP government were increasingly imperiling regional peace and stability.
When asked whether there is any chance of total diplomatic cut down between the two countries, she said: "Pakistan has no desire to escalate the situation".
"We have always reacted with restraint. However, violation of diplomatic norms by Indian officials in Islamabad and India's continued belligerent attitude is a threat to regional peace and security," Farooqui asserted.
In IoJ&K, she said that Thursday was the 326th day of the continued oppression, deliberate acts of terrorizing, inhuman lockdown and military siege faced by the innocent people in the Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
In recent act of state terrorism, Farooqui said that the Indian occupation forces during their continued so-called cordon-and-search operations, and fake encounters martyred 14 Kashmiris.
"Pakistan strongly condemns the unabated extra-judicial killings of Kashmiri youth by the Indian occupation forces in Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir," she added.
On the Line of Control (LoC), Farooqui said that ceasefire violations by the Indian security forces continue unabated.
As a result of recent violations and mortar and artillery shelling on the LoC in Hajipir and Bedori sectors, 13 years old, Iqra Shabbir embraced shahadat; while Zahida Bano and 12 years old, Saddam Rafique, sustained serious injuries, all residents of Mensar village.
India has committed 1,440 ceasefire violations in these six months, resulting in 13 shahadats and serious injuries to 104 innocent civilians, she said.
"We condemn the targeting of innocent civilians by the Indian occupation forces, which are in clear violation of the 2003 Ceasefire Understanding, and in complete disregard for international human rights and international norms," Farooqui added.
On India's election as the non-permanent member of the UNSC, she said that the election of India raised fundamental questions.
Farooqui said that India stood in flagrant violation of several resolutions of the Security Council that mandate a UN-supervised plebiscite to enable the people of Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJ&K) to exercise their fundamental right to self-determination.
India has border disputes with all its neighboring countries, she added. Farooqui said that Indian actions in the IOJ&K and beyond were a fundamental negation of the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.
To another query, if there was any cooperation between Pakistan and India to contain the COVID-19 and locusts, despite tensions, Farooqui said that Pakistan had been participating in Commission for Controlling the Desert Locust in South-West Asia (SWAC) meetings on weekly basis, which were fruitful in exchanging information in the bordering areas of Pakistan and India.
"We believe that the respective technical teams have been coordinating appropriately through the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)," she added. At Pakistan's request, Farooqui said that under the aegis of the FAO, a decision was made at the ministerial level meeting of Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, and Iran, to revive communication between the regional countries through the SWAC of the FAO in March 2020.
In response, each country, through the SWAC, agreed to constitute a technical and operational coordination (ToC) team to exchange information; enhance coordination at the border areas; and increase synchronization to combat desert locust outbreak in the region, she added.
Farooqui further said that the Covid-19 pandemic was a common challenge demanding international cooperation among all the countries. On the Afghan peace process, she said that Pakistan believed that the peace process had reached a critical stage following the signing of the US-Taliban Peace Agreement.
"We hope that the release of prisoners will be completed as agreed in the US-Taliban peace agreement at the earliest to pave the way for the start of intra-Afghan negotiations," she added.
To another query about the US role in brokering "deal of the century", Farooqui said that Pakistan had consistently supported a two-state solution, as enshrined in the relevant United Nations Security Council and General Assembly resolutions.
She said that Pakistan continued to support a just and lasting solution of the Palestinian issue, through dialogue and negotiations, that leads to the realization of the legitimate rights of the Palestinians, including the right of self-determination.
"We renew our call for the establishment of a viable, independent and contiguous State of Palestine, on the basis of internationally-agreed parameters, the pre-1967 borders, and with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital," Farooqui said.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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