ISLAMABAD: The United Nations should be more responsive not only to emerging challenges but also to persistent calls for implementation of all its resolutions, a senior Foreign Office official said here on Tuesday.

Addressing a press conference with some UN officials, Additional Foreign Secretary in charge for the United Nations Tasnim Aslam said the 70th anniversary of the world organisation was also an opportunity for introspection on “the reasons where we have not succeeded in delivering justice to people and communities or ensuring their fundamental rights pledged to them by the UN and why lingering conflicts have not been resolved”.

Ms Aslam said Pakistan was committed to promoting justice and international law. “As we take stock of the UN’s accomplishments today, we can rightly be proud of many successes that we as comity of nations have achieved in numerous areas from human rights, peacekeeping, economic agenda-setting, arms control and disarmament and countering terrorism to arresting climate change and environmental degradation.”

She said development strategies remained the first and foremost national undertakings of Pakistan which appreciated the UN’s active role in the agreement on post-2015 development agenda, including the new sustainable development goals (SDGs).

It represented a giant leap forward and Pakistan believed that the 17 broad and cross-cutting SDGs and the 169 associated targets complemented the country’s development needs and priorities as articulated in its ‘Vision 2025’.

“We are of the view that in the recent adoption of the post-2015 development agenda, the international community has committed itself to a shared vision of inclusive growth and development, ensuring that no one is left behind,” she said.

She said Pakistan would continue to work with the UN to advance dialogue, diplomacy and international cooperation to address the existing and emerging international challenges.

The country remained engaged with the UN, especially the Human Rights Council to play an active role in the promotion of rights, she said.

Ms Aslam said Pakistan, along with like-minded countries, also called for dialogue and harmony among religions and civilisations.

Published in Dawn, October 7th, 2015

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