Qureshi discusses security matters with Iranian FM

NEW YORK: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi held a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Monday. Matters pertaining to peace and security in the region were discussed in the meeting, Radio Pakistan reported.

Speaking on the occasion, the foreign minister said Prime Minister Imran Khan will soon meet Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. Both foreign ministers agreed to continue consultations on the changing situation of the region.

Later the Prime Minister Imran Khan and President of the United States Donald Trump would have a one-on-one meeting in New York. The prim minister would apprise the president of the situation in occupied Kashmir, the Afghan peace process besides the bilateral relations would also come under discussion. Earlier in the day, Khan met British Prime Minister Boris Johnson over breakfast. The meeting was held on the sidelines of the ongoing 74th UN General Assembly session. The two leaders discussed matters of bilateral interest.

Meanwhile Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi also met President of International Crisis Group Robert Malley in New York and stressed the need for resolution of bilateral disputes in South Asia for durable peace and stability in the region. The foreign minister said the Indian government has held hostage eight million Kashmiris by clamping the worst curfew in occupied Kashmir. He said the situation is so dire that the Kashmiris have no access to essential commodities, including food and medicines. Qureshi said the international media and human rights organisations are exposing the Indian oppression in the occupied valley.