LAHORE: Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi has said that the silent diplomacy of army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has played a very important and effective role in pulling the country out of isolation internationally.

Talking to the media here on Sunday, he said that until recently the country was facing difficulties on the international level as bilateral relations with friendly countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iran had hit a snag.

But Gen Bajwa’s visits to these countries and meetings with their leaders helped remove the coldness in bilateral relations and the reservations these states had against Islamabad’s policies.

Responding to a question, Mr Elahi said that meetings of the army chief with a high-level Chinese leadership regarding China-Pakistan Economic Corridor played a key role in restoring the mutual trust, while his visits to Turkey, Egypt and Qatar also warmed up diplomatic relations with these countries.

The speaker said that inauguration of the Kartarpur corridor has exposed India’s hostile propaganda against Pakistan and, for the first time, Indian leadership seems to be on the back foot on the diplomatic front.

Published in Dawn, December 24th, 2018