ISLAMABAD, Sept 5: The head of the Organisation of Islamic Conference has welcomed as “very timely” Pakistan’s proposal that the 57-nation pan-Islamic body should pursue adoption of an additional protocol at the United Nations to ensure respect for all religions and faiths.

The proposal was made by Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri on Wednesday when he telephoned OIC Secretary-General Prof Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu to discuss the recent incidents of inflammatory cartoons, defamation and blasphemous utterances in some western countries against Islam and its holy personalities.

According to the Foreign Minister’s office, Mr Kasuri, the current chairman of the Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers (ICFM), during his conversation with Dr Ihsanoglu underscored the need for the OIC to work for the adop-tion of an additional protocol to an appropriate convention by the United Nations or a separate convention focusing on respect of all religions and faiths.