Foreign Office Spokesman Dr Mohammad Faisal on Thursday said that Pakistan is making all-out efforts for peace across the whole region.
Talking to the media, he said Pakistan had offered Sri Lanka all-out support and cooperation after the tragic attacks on Easter. He said President Dr Arif Alvi, Prime Minister Imran Khan and Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi called their respective Sri Lankan counterparts and affirmed that the people and government of Pakistan stood in complete solidarity with their Sri Lankan brethren. He said Sri Lanka had not sought any help from Pakistan so far.
Faisal said all Pakistanis in Sri Lanka were safe and there was no report of any fatality. He said three Pakistani women injured in the blasts had now recovered and discharged from hospitals. He said the Pakistani High Commission in Colombo was constantly in touch with Pakistanis in Sri Lanka.
Clarifying the statement of Prime Minister Imran Khan in Iran, Faisal said the premier was referring to non-state actors using Pakistani soil under foreign influence to carry out activities in Pakistan or coordinating from Pakistan, and the case in point was like that of Kulbhushan Jadhav and local facilitators. He said the premier clearly stated during his Iran visit that Pakistan was attacked from Afghanistan and Iran. He said Imran Khan’s visit was in line with the government’s approach to meaningfully strengthen its relations with all neighbouring countries. He said Iran gave emphatic support to Pakistan on the issue of Kashmir. He said a joint statement issued later discussed in length the issue of Kashmir, including the mention of UNSC resolutions, so it was a great diplomatic achievement. He said Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project was also discussed among other projects during the premier’s visit to Iran.
Faisal said Imran Khan, during his visit to China, would not only meet the Chinese leadership but an entire gamut of world leaders.
To a question on Indian suspension of Kashmir border trade with India, he said trade and other confidence building measures were important between neighbouring countries, and Indian decision to stop the trade was regrettable.
He said Pakistan was committed to the Kartarpur Corridor and waiting for the next meeting with India in this regard.Expressing deep concern on the plight of Kashmiris and incarceration of Hurriyat leaders, the Foreign Office spokesperson said intensified atrocities continued in Indian-held Kashmir.
He also regretted the selective attribution of his remarks on Dr Aafia Siddiqui, which he said were taken out of context by a section of the media.
“We are in touch with Dr Aafia Siddiqui and her family and will continue our efforts to bring her back to Pakistan. We continue raising the issue in Islamabad as well as Washington.”
He said Pakistan’s consul general in Houston regularly visits Dr Aafia Siddiqu, and her last such visit was on 18th of this month.
He also clarified that no firing range was being constructed in the US Embassy in Islamabad. “The Islamabad police and the US Embassy are cooperating for upgradation of the Islamabad Capital Territory’s firing range facilities.”
