TURKISH President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has once again proved beyond any doubt that he is a true and sincere friend of Pakistan and that he cares much for woes and difficulties of its people. This is crystal clear from the official announcement that the Turkish leader has “amicably resolved” the Karkey dispute and saved Pakistan from paying the $1.2 billion penalty imposed by the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).
Karkey issue, stemming from the so-called rental power projects programme of the then PPP Government, was a classic example of how undue intervention of courts and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) landed Pakistan into trouble. As in the case of Riko Deko (where the country has been slapped with a whopping penalty of $6 billion by ICSID), Karkey also won the arbitration battle and Pakistan was obliged to pay the huge penalty. The penalty of $1.2 meant much for Pakistan as the country is seeking financial assistance from donors on tough conditions. In this backdrop, the large-heartedness demonstrated by President Erdogan is a great favour to the country and speaks volumes about his love and attachment with Pakistan. This is not for the first time that he has shown commitment to welfare of Pakistan as he went out of way in providing moral, diplomatic and economic assistance to ensure relief of different sorts for the country. Only recently, he spoke loudly during his UNGA speech against India’s unilateral move of illegal annexation of Jammu and Kashmir at the risk of cancellation of the proposed visit of Prime Minister Modi to Ankara. His country has always been in the forefront of efforts to provide relief to the people during earthquakes and floods in Pakistan. Under his leadership, Turkey is also providing valuable economic and technical assistance in different fields including energy, transportation and services. People of Pakistan are thankful to the leader of the great brotherly country for his latest gesture of goodwill and hope that relations between the two countries would continue to grow for all times to come.
