ISLAMABAD: In a surprising claim, the Foreign Office on Thursday said that it was “unaware” about the recent visit of a dozen ambassadors to Swat valley where they narrowly escaped a terrorist attack.
About a dozen diplomats who were on their way to Malam Jaba Swat to attend a function organised by Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) on September 23, had remained unhurt in a terrorist attack, while one policeman who was part of the security squad was martyred when an explosion hit a vehicle of the convoy carrying the diplomats.
On Thursday, Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch plainly claimed that Foreign Office was not informed about the visit of the foreign diplomats to Swat.
She said that Pakistan condemned the incident of September 23 and the security agencies were investigating the matter.
She said that “with regards to this particular incident of 23rd of September, this was a trip which was organised by ICCI and not by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or any government institution.”
“We’ve taken serious note of the lapses which were made by the concerned individuals, including their failure to inform the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of organising such a high profile visit,” she added.
She said that the ministry is also in the process of developing guidelines to ensure that such incidents do not happen again.
“The Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar has met with the ambassadors and heads of missions of the countries involved. He has assured them that Pakistan will fully investigate this incident and institute procedures to ensure their full safety,” she added.
Baloch further said that “with regards to the travel of any diplomat to Khyber Pakhtunkhawa, there were procedures in place, adding “we’ve undertaken internal investigation, and have come to the conclusion that as far as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is concerned, all protocols were followed.”
“That includes information regarding the travel of ambassadors who contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs individually regarding their travel to the K-P province. This information was shared with the KP government in writing, and we have documentary evidence for that,” she said.
“Some ambassadors individually approached the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, informing us of their travel as has been their practice. This information was shared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the KP government,” she added.
“As for the event, which was organised by ICCI, the details of the event were not shared by ICCI with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. So, the fact that there would be so many ambassadors traveling together for a particular event not shared with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We are in the process of discussions and internal deliberations on how to rectify what has happened and how to fix this for the future,” said Baloch.
However, shesaid that Pakistan was committed to providing full security to any diplomat who is in Pakistan, adding “we’re committed to making their stay in Pakistan as comfortable and as secure as possible.”
“In that respect, we encourage foreign diplomats to explore Pakistan and to follow the guidelines that have been shared with them on several occasions with regards to their travel to any part of Pakistan,” she added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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