ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Saturday said that its active and prominent participation in the United Nations General Asse­m­bly’s opening session and allied meetings manifested its support and commitment to the UN’s purposes and principles.

In a statement, the Foreign Office spokesperson said Pakistan would continue to participate actively in that endeavour, in cooperation with other member states, to build a world where conflict was outlawed and equitable prosperity for all was pursued in conditions of peace and security.

He said as noted by Prime Minister Imran Khan in his address to the General Assembly on Sept 25, the United Nations should be made fully responsive to the challenges of present times. He said Pakistan participated at the highest level in the opening segment of the General Assembly’s annual session from Sept 21 to Oct 1, 2020.

He said this year’s session was of enhan­ced significance due to the United Nations 75th anniversary celebrations. The limitations imposed by Covid-19 necessitated the conduct of meetings in a virtual format.

Prime Minister Imran Khan reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to multilateralism; exposed egregious violations of human rights and international law in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK); called for realisation of the Kashmiris right to self-determination; and articulated Pakistan’s perspective on a host of contemporary global and regional challenges.

FO calls for a world where conflict is outlawed

He also participated as one of the key speakers in four other high-level events organised on the sidelines, pertaining to poverty alleviation; illicit financial flows; financing for development; and bio-diversity summit.

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi took part in numerous activities including the high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the UN and the 25th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women, as well as the ministerial meetings of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation; Uniting for Consensus group; and the UN Alliance of Civilisations.

The prime minister highlighted the developments in the IIOJK, and demanded peaceful resolution of the dispute in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people.

Published in Dawn, October 4th, 2020