The incoming president of the United Nations General Assembly announced on Sunday that he was postponing his visit to Pakistan due to ‘some technical flight problems’.
Turkish diplomat Volkan Bozkir was elected president of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly last month and was scheduled to arrive in Islamabad on Sunday. But in a Twitter post, he said the visit to Pakistan’s capital would have to wait. “I am hoping to visit Pakistan in the near future and looking forward to a fruitful exchange with the Pakistani authorities, regarding the issues & priorities on the United Nations 75th General Assembly agenda.”
In response, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi tweeted, “I look forward to welcoming you to Pakistan soon for a constructive and fruitful visit.”
Earlier, Qureshi, while announcing the visit, had hoped he would discuss a range of issues with Bozkir, including Kashmir. Qureshi had said he would present to Bozkir Pakistan’s position on occupied Kashmir, which he had said was suffering the “worst human rights situation” in the world. The foreign minister had added that he would also inform Bozkir about the atrocities committed by the Indian army in occupied Kashmir.
On June 21, Qureshi had congratulated Bozkir on his election as the president of the next session of the UN General Assembly. “On behalf of the people and government of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, I would like to extend my warm felicitation on your unanimous election by all member states as the President of the historic 75th Session of the UN General Assembly,” Qureshi had said in a letter, adding that Bozkir’s unanimous election reflected the international community’s ‘trust and confidence’ in his abilities to lead the UNGA ‘at this time of unprecedented global health and economic challenges’.
