ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Thursday said that it looks forward to working with the new US Administration to further strengthen bilateral relations and to continue partnership to achieve peace, stability, and prosperity in the region.
In his weekly media briefing, Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri stated that Pakistan would also welcome resumption of structural dialogue with the US.
To a question, he also expressed the hope that the new US administration would take notice of the grave human rights violations in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIJ&K) and the international community would force India to ensure implementation of the UN resolutions to resolve the longstanding issue.
About the UAE's visa restrictions allegedly over security concerns to 13 Muslim-majority countries, including Pakistan, he said: "the developments regarding change in visa policy for Pakistani nationals and its purported causes have not been confirmed by the UAE side to Pakistan as yet".
"We are in contact with the UAE authorities in this regard and working with them on regular basis," he added.
"We do not agree with media reports that characterize the attitude of UAE authorities towards Pakistanis as hostile. Millions of Pakistanis work and reside peacefully in the UAE with the approval of the UAE authorities. "Isolated" events should not be used to cast aspersions over the nature of Pakistan's longstanding fraternal ties with UAE," the spokesperson added in response to a query about reports of "targeted crackdown" against Pakistanis by the UAE.
In response to another question with regard to the debate on recognition of Israel and the alleged meeting of some Pakistani officials with Israelis in Jordan, the spokesperson described those as "speculations" and insisted that recognition of Israel was not under consideration.
He reiterated that there was no change in Pakistan's principled position on the issue, adding that the prime minister had made it clear that unless a just settlement of the Palestine issue, satisfactory to the Palestinian people, was found, Pakistan could not recognise Israel.
For just and lasting peace, he added that it was imperative to have a two-state solution in accordance with the relevant United Nations and OIC resolutions, with the pre-1967 borders, and Al-Quds Al-Sharif as the capital of a viable, independent and contiguous Palestinian State.
"With this, there is no further space for speculations on the issue," he asserted.
Responding to another query about the absence of Kashmir from the agenda of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) meeting from November 27-28 in Niger, he termed the reports as "baseless", saying that such "irresponsible speculations" were part of false Indian propaganda and disinformation campaign.
"Jammu and Kashmir dispute remains a permanent item on the OIC's agenda.The Organization has been unambiguously pronouncing itself on the issue for decades, through a succession of Summit as well as CFM resolutions," he said.
In the aftermath of India's illegal and unilateral actions of 5 August 2019, he added that the OIC had been actively seized of the matter. In a series of pronouncements, issued from time to time, he stated that the OIC General Secretariat has called for settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
He said that the OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir had also met thrice in past 15 months. He added that the Contact Group last met at the level of foreign ministers in June this year and its final communiqué called upon India to rescind its illegal actions and stop egregious human rights violations in the illegally occupied territory.
"The CFM session in Niger that starts today (Friday) forms the first such meeting after India's illegal and unilateral actions of 5 August 2019. It is expected that the session would reiterate its strong support to the Kashmir Cause. Let me confirm that the Jammu and Kashmir dispute continue to be amongst the longest standing items on the OIC agenda," he added.
About certain media reports about China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he asserted that there was a lot of "disinformation, misinformation, and propaganda" aimed at the CPEC.
"However, facts speak for themselves...Let me reiterate, as often underscored by our leadership, that CPEC is a transformational project and is positively contributing to Pakistan's economy, national development, and regional growth," he added.
He further stated that Prime Minister Imran Khan and President Xi Jinping, in their meetings, reached consensus on further promoting and expanding CPEC as a "High-Quality Demonstration Project" of the BRI.
"We are in consultations with China on further expanding CPEC and making it a centerpiece for regional connectivity and prosperity," he said, adding that the 10th Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) on CPEC would be held soon that would give further impetus to the execution and expansion of the CPEC projects.
During Covid-19 pandemic, he added that both Pakistan and China had made every effort to ensure that the CPEC projects were completed on time. "We believe that in post-Covid 19 world, CPEC and BRI would become hub for regional growth and trade. We welcome third countries to invest in CPEC's SEZs [special economic zones]," he added.
In response to another query about the possible US attack on Iran, the spokesperson stated that Pakistan believed in policy of engagement to peacefully resolve the issues. He also reiterated Pakistan's readiness to play a role of mediator to ease the tension.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020