UNITED NATIONS: After the culmination of his five-day visit to the UN headquarters in New York, interim Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq headed to London on Saturday, amid speculations that he might have a ‘secret rendezvous’ with PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif in the British capital.

At a news conference on Friday evening in New York, Mr Kakar indicated that he was returning home to work with the Election Commission and let the new government take charge of long-term relations, such as negotiating new terms with the IMF.

He did not respond when asked about a possible meeting with Nawaz Sharif. In response to a question about Mr Sharif’s return to Pakistan in October, he said the former premier would be “treated under the laws of Pakistan”.

The interim PM also did not respond to a question if he would visit Saudi Arabia on his way back to Islamabad.

Interim PM fails to meet Erdogan, official US delegation, flies to London amid rumours of meeting with Nawaz

Official sources said PM Kakar stopped over in Paris on his way to New York and visited the Eiffel Tower with his family. He also spent some quiet time with his family and friends in New York and was seen dining at a Turkish restaurant on Thursday night.

He did have a busy official schedule though, meeting global leaders. The list included Turkish President Recep Erdogan as well, but the meeting did not take place for some reason. He also did not have a separate meeting with the official US delegation.

According to the interim premier, he met business bodies in the US that showed interest in the economic revival plans of Pakistan through privatisation and the Special Investment Facilitation Council.

Low-key affair?

The visit by an interim ruler was supposed to be a low-key affair but assumed greater importance when Canada publicly accused India of killing a Sikh leader on its soil.

Mr Kakar responded promptly to the developing situation, terming it “a first-of-its-kind event after World War I”.

“An Asian country staging a murder on Canadian soil! Its impacts are felt across the Western countries who now realise how India is persecuting its minorities,” he said.

When a journalist objected to his using “genocide’ to describe the persecution of minorities in India, he said, “Genocide is a suitable word, not to call it a genocide will be a crime.”

“…no other word can describe what the Kashmiris are facing. While they are being killed and raped, I cannot sit here and wonder if the word genocide may hurt someone’s feelings.”

He called for the formation of an international alliance to keep in check India’s “rough behaviour” including the attacks it sponsored inside Pakistan.

IMF and Pakistan

Mr Kakar said he had a detailed meeting with IMF officials at the UN headquarters. “The IMF was very appreciative of the interim government’s steps over illegal trade of dollars,” he said, adding, “IMF did not demand anything, rather the caretaker government was giving them confidence and [it] would abide by the agreements.”

Shedding light on Pakistan-US relations, Mr Kakar said Pakistan had an exclusive identity and it should be seen through “regional or extra-regional prisms.”

Published in Dawn, September 24th, 2023