Qureshi criticises govt for ‘lack of response’ to US-India joint statement

Former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Sunday criticised "the coalition government’s lack of response" to the joint statement issued by the United States and India which called on Pakistan to crack down on extremists that target New Delhi.

Modi, who was on a state visit to the US earlier this week, received a red-carpet welcome as he arrived at the White House on Thursday. During his visit, the two countries sealed major defence and technology deals as Washington bets big on India as a counterweight to China.

Using the visit to further India’s agenda against Pakistan, a joint statement issued by the two heads of state late on Thursday called on Pakistan to crack down on “extremist groups based in Pakistan” such as the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad.

Responding to media queries regarding the statement today, the Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch had said: “We consider the Pakistan-specific reference in the ‘Joint Statement from the United States and India’, issued on 22 June 2023, as unwarranted, one-sided, and misleading.

“The reference is contrary to diplomatic norms and has political overtones. We are surprised that it has been added despite Pakistan’s close counterterrorism cooperation with the US.”

Speaking to the media in Multan today, Qureshi said it pained him to see the joint communique issued after Biden and Modi’s meeting in Washington.

“This was a bilateral visit, it is his right. They met [and] they had a discussion. But the joint communique issued after the meeting — reading that communique as a former foreign minister of Pakistan — caused me great pain.”

He said that the statement failed to recognise Pakistan’s economic and human losses in the fight against terrorism.

“And then in a bilateral meeting, setting aside diplomatic norms, Pakistan is made a target of criticism. This was inappropriate,” he said.

At the same time, Qureshi said he was “amazed” to see that no one in Pakistan was saying anything. He said that he had made his views and his “disappointment” on the topic clear yesterday outside an anti-terrorism court and was doing the same today.

The PTI leader said that while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was doing “salesmanship” of mangoes in France, he should also have given a response on the statement issued by US and India.

“Our foreign minister says nothing on this? What is a bigger forum than the Assembly […] there is no discussion on this?” he asked.

He noted that the FO spokesperson had issued a statement but said it was “not enough”.

“She gave the right response. But it doesn’t carry the same weight as one by political, elected leadership. So, I am sad to say that the government didn’t show the responsibility it needed to.”

Qureshi further said that the US could not ignore the fact that Pakistan had cooperated in the fight against terrorism. “Terrorism is a global phenomenon […] it is not limited to our neighbourhood. And Pakistan was and is ready to counter it. We have always said that we are ready for cooperation with the US on counter-terrorism.”

He said that the joint statement, which had targeted Pakistan, did not mention the Indian injustices against the people of occupied Kashmir. “There is no mention of it. The treatment of minorities, especially Muslims […] there is no mention of it and we are sitting silent.”