Zubair qureshi
Islamabad
Pakistan has taken another step forward with regard to exposing Indian acts of sabotage like terror financing and supplying of weapons and equipment to various militant outfits operating on Pakistan’s soil.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and DG ISPR Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar at a joint press briefing on Monday highlighted various steps taken at the external as well as the internal level to expose and thwart the Indian acts of sabotage.
Monday’s press briefing was also a follow-up of their Nov 14’s announcement of sending a dossier to the United Nations.
The dossier, Foreign Minister Qureshi said, contained irrefutable evidence of New Delhi’s involvement in subversive acts that range from attacking on civilians through proxies, setting up terrorism camps on the Indian soil and beyond and using terrorism as instrument of its foreign policy.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Pakistan had raised the issue on a number of forums and with friends including P-5 envoys, OIC, EU, non-permanent members of the Security Council and the United Nations (UN) and the feedback received was quite encouraging.
Pakistan’s permanent Representative at the United Nations Ambassador Munir Akram has requested for meeting with the Secretary General of the UN António Guterresand and as soon as they meet, he will present the evidence of the Indian involvement in anti-Pakistan acts, Qureshi further said.
Shah Mahmood said this time the world was growing increasingly responsive to Pakistan’s stance on India’s state terrorism and the matter was also highlighted in the international media. The foreign press has drawn the world attention to the Indian atrocities in the Illegally Occupied Kashmir and its sponsoring of terrorism to the neighboring countries.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi in his interaction with media persons said there were around 28 articles published in the international media which have supported our point of view. “This is unprecedented as in the past the international media has not taken into consideration Pakistan’s stance with such seriousness,” said Qureshi.
Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar on the occasion drew the media persons’ attention towards unprovoked violations by the Indian forces along the Line of Control (LoC) and held the Pakistani forces were prepared for any misadventure by the Indian side.
“We exercise maximum restraint despite casualties at our side as on both sides of the LoC, Kashmiri people live,” said Gen Babar. However, he said LoC violations have intensified since 2014 when Modi came to power. He shared a number of steps being taken to protect the local population along the LoC. These steps include construction of bunkers, mass evacuation (though it doesn’t often work as the local population doesn’t want to leave their villages) etc.
India is at present operating 66 training camps for sponsoring and harbouring terrorists on its soil and also in a neighbouring country of Pakistan, said he. Foreign Minister on the occasion said recently the Pakistan government had taken up this issue with Afghanistan and made it clear to them that Pakistan was not against their relations with India, however, he emphasized this has also been conveyed to the country that Pakistan would not like Afghan soil to be used against it.
We have four high profile exchanges and meetings with the Afghanistan leadership culminating in Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit and meeting with Ashraf Ghani. Our sincerest wish is for economic and political stability of Afghanistan and for this Pakistan can go an extra mile, Qureshi said. “We have made them realize that finger pointing is of no use, let bygone be bygone and let’s move forward and start a new chapter of friendship and bilateral relations.”
We also have undeniable evidence of the Indian attempts targeting Pakistan’s economic partnership with China, particularly, its obsession with China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). They have allocated Rs80 billion to sabotage the CPEC and we have confirmed reports about that, he said. India was allowing its land to be used against Pakistan for terrorism, said Qureshi, adding that New Delhi was also planning attacks from “neighboring countries”. Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhry and other senior officials were also present in the meeting.
