ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet on Thursday reaffirmed Pakistan’s firm commitment to peace and stability while fully protecting its sovereignty, preserving territorial integrity and responding with full force in case of any external aggression.
The cabinet, which met here under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Imran Khan, praised the armed forces for their calibrated response to the Indian aggression which was designed to give a message that though Pakistan has the capability, it does not intend to harm innocent civilians or cause undue damage.
Lauding the prime minister’s speech as of a statesman, the cabinet expressed the hope that sanity will prevail on the Indian government and leadership so that regional peace is not jeopardized.
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi briefed the cabinet about his engagements with the foreign ministers of China, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Iran, and other world leaders on the current situation. The cabinet appreciated the efforts of the foreign minister and the ministry of foreign affairs towards highlighting Pakistan’s principled stance and its efforts to deescalate the situation.
The cabinet ratified the decisions taken by the Cabinet Committee on Energy and the Cabinet Committee on Privatization in their meetings held on February 2. The decisions of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) taken during its meeting held on February 19 and of the Cabinet Committee for Disposal of Legislative Cases in its meeting on February 26 were also ratified.
The cabinet granted exception to the FIA from the provision of PPRA Rules 2004 for the expenditures of joint investigation team formed by the Supreme Court of Pakistan to probe fake/benami accounts for facilitating its day to day working, including hiring of foreign/local experts and for timely completion of the probe.
The cabinet approved signing of a framework arrangement amounting to US$ 500 million with Republic of Korea. Approval for signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Committee on Financial Monitoring of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan and Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU) of Government of Pakistan concerning cooperation in the exchange of financial intelligence related to money laundering and terrorist financing was granted.
The cabinet approved appointment of chairman and directors of the board of directors of National Bank of Pakistan. Zubyr Soomro has been appointed as chairman of the National Bank of Pakistan.
The memorandum of cooperation between the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Ministry of Law and Justice of Pakistan was approved by the cabinet.
The cabinet also reviewed the progress on disposal of state properties owned by various ministries/departments. It was decided to expedite the process so as to ensure optimum utilization of dead properties and also to raise much needed finances for projects of public welfare.
The prime minister, during the meeting, also apprised the cabinet about the decision to permit construction of high-rise buildings in the federal capital. He said emphasis on vertical structure was need of the hour in view of increasing population and fast depleting green belts especially in major cities of the country. The cabinet ratified the decision.
