KARACHI: …Mr Shuaib Qureshi, has been appointed Pakistan’s first Ambassador to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The an­­nouncement was made last night (Sunday) [Oct 30] … by the Pakistan Ministry of Fore­ign Affairs. “Pakistan is pledged to the mai­n­­­­­tenance of world peace and … we shall co-operate with every country and certainly with the USSR,” the Ambassador-designate told Dawn in an interview shortly after the announcement.

He added: “Heavy responsibility has fallen on my shoulders. But, given goodwill and friendly approach of which there is evidence in abundance, I hope we shall succeed in our objectives. My efforts would be directed towards fostering good neighbourly relations between Pakistan and Russia.”

[Meanwhile, as reported by news agencies in Lake Success,] a … spokesman for the Arab nations told the United Press of America yesterday [Oct 30] that the Arab nations would reject categorically the “Israeli” request for direct negotiations for settlement of “Israel’s” borders. [He] said that no official stand would be taken … until their delegations … had time to consult, but stressed it was a foregone conclusion that the “Israeli” proposal will be rejected.

Published in Dawn, October 31st, 2024