Expressing deep condolences over the tragic deaths of three British nationals of Pakistani origin in Birmingham in the ongoing riots, the Foreign Office on Thursday said that it was the responsibility of the British government to ensure their security.
"Out of 1.5 million Pakistanis living in Britain, majority are British nationals therefore, their security and safety is the responsibility of the British government," said Tehmina Janjua, Foreign Office Spokesperson in her weekly news briefing. As far as Pakistanis are concerned, the High Commission in the United Kingdom had approached the Pakistani community living there and advised them to remain vigilant and continue supporting the British authorities in dealing with the crisis. The spokesperson clarified that the ongoing riots in different areas of Britain were not targeted at any particular community rather were the result of an incident in London.
She said that Pakistanis had been advised to remain calm and stay away from those areas which the British authorities had declared sensitive. Janjua informed that Pakistan's Consul General in Birmingham had visited the bereaved families and sympathised with them and the Pakistan High Commission in London was in close contact with its Consul Generals in Birmingham, Bradford, Manchester and Glasgow.
Responding to a question regarding refusal to issue visa extensions to some US officials and aid workers, Janjua said that the issuance of visas to the Americans and movements of their diplomats inside Pakistan, was the issue currently under discussion between Islamabad and Washington. "Issues of visas and movement of diplomats are being discussed between the two governments," she said and refused to go into further details.
On the movement of diplomats, she reiterated that there was no specific restriction on the movements of diplomats of any country inside Pakistan except for security reasons. About the relations between Pakistan and US, the spokesperson referred to a statement of the Foreign Minister saying that both the countries had strategic convergence and certain issues at the operational level were being worked out which should not be a matter of concern for anybody.
To a query whether there were any fresh calls on Pakistan from the US for launching a military operation in the tribal areas, Janjua made it clear that Pakistan undertook all its military operations and activities, especially with regard to countering terrorism, in its national interest.
"It is in Pakistan's interest to fight terrorism. This is essential for peace and development in the country," she said, adding any action that would be taken for countering terrorism and fighting militancy would be done in the context of Pakistan's interests and operational requirements.
To another question, she said that Pakistan was the first country to support peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan. She termed the recently held meeting of the core group comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan and the US productive. About the unrest in Syria, the spokesperson said that Pakistan was monitoring the situation. However, she added that it had been Pakistan's stand that there should be peace and stability in Syria without foreign interference.
To another query regarding the India-Pak talk process, she said that the demonstration of the Indian will was evident from the recent discussions which were held in an extremely frank, cordial and constructive atmosphere. She said that the Indian side had also described the Pakistan's Foreign Minister visit as a new era in relationship between the two countries. The spokesperson declined to confirm the extradition of Umar Patek to Indonesia, saying she could not confirm it because the matter was being dealt with by the Ministry of Interior which was responsible for issues relating to extradition and repatriation.
Janjua said that Pakistan had formally extended recognition to the newly independent state of South Sudan. "Pakistan welcomes the new country into the comity of nations and wishes its government and people a peaceful and prosperous future," she said, adding Pakistan's ambassador to Ethiopia had been concurrently accredited to the Republic of South Sudan.
To another query, she said that Pakistan and China had very co-operative relations in a number of areas including in the field of science and technology. Commenting on the US Chinook helicopter crash in Afghanistan, she said that the loss of any human life was a matter of concern. "We have sympathies with the US and Afghanistan on the loss of lives in the incident," she added.
She also described a report as speculation according to which the US forces were lured into that area by some Pakistanis present there. The fact was that the incident took place in the North of Afghanistan which was very far from Pakistan, she said. Referring to Hina Rabbani Khar's visit to Turkey, Janjua said that the visit was among her first visits abroad as a Foreign Minister which was reflective of our close and fraternal relations with Turkey.
Comments
Comments are closed.