Ijaz Kakakhel Islamabad
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar on Thursday categorical terms clarified that there was no backchannel diplomacy going on with India.
“At this moment, there is no such thing under way,” Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar told the Senate – the upper house of parliament.
She said that backchannel diplomacy was desirable when it was result-oriented. Speaking in the Senate, Khar went on to say that Pakistan had always taken initiatives to promote peace in the region but “right now, the cross-border hostility from India is of a unique type”.
She said Pakistan was asked at international forums sometimes to normalize its ties with India, but the world should look at the messages New Delhi was sending to Islamabad. “The messages that we are getting are all conflagratory. Pakistan has the largest interest in unleashing the potential of this region but when you have a government on the other side whose prime minister says that their nuclear assets are not for Diwali then what can we do?” Khar told the senators.
Hina Rabbani Khar told the House during the question hour that hostility coming from the neighboring country was of unique nature. She maintained that relations between the two nations were marred by a number of provocative steps by India. She stated that despite New Delhi’s negative attitude, Islamabad would continue on the path of peace, and the tension between the two on the Line of Control had decreased.
She continued that minorities in Pakistan enjoyed full religious protection but in India, they were being treated badly. Khar described the opening of the Kartarpur Corridor as a positive precedent, stating that such processes must move forward.
The statement came in response to PTI Senator Faisal Javed Khan’s question about Pakistan’s decision regarding normalization of ties with India until the revocation of the August 5 move. On August 5, 2019, the Indian government abolished Article 370 of the Constitution which grants special status to Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
“It had been decided on the August 5 move that no talks with India will take place. Has the incumbent government stepped back from the position?” he asked, adding that the Kashmir issue hasn’t been highlighted since the formation of this government. At this, Khar stated that the decision Faisal Javed referred to was taken by the PTI-led regime in 2021. The minister further stated that no talks have taken place with India on trade either.
