Raza Rabbani takes Qureshi to task in Senate

ISLAMABAD: Chairman Senate Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani on Monday summoned Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi to explain the ‘disclosures’ he made during his news briefing in Washington about Taliban and two hostages, as Senator Mian Raza Rabbani questioned why the Parliament was not first taken into confidence thereon.

On a point of public importance, former chairman Senate Raza Rabbani raised the issue of minister’s briefing, as reported in the print media and read out some parts of what he said. He wondered as the minister spoke on matters of national security and national importance, why were the Parliament or its relevant chambers not taken on board or taken into confidence first.

He read out, quoting the minister, “that when Secretary Pompeo came to Islamabad in 2018, I told him that we are interested in resettling our bilateral relationship. Pompeo said this would only be rooted through Kabul and today I told him that we fulfilled our promise and what is our promise. The Taliban came to the table then you said the delegation should be authoritative and powerful. We did that”.

Rabbani pointed out to the chairman, “Mr look at the disclosures, he is making”. He then quoted the minister from the news report that, "then, we were told”. The lawmaker again emphatically said the US had the audacity to tell a sovereign nation and the Foreign Minister had the audacity to admit it and he says, “then were told the insurgents were holding two foreign hostages, if they are released, it will create goodwill and end the stalemate. Our security establishment held 72 meetings and you saw the two hostages reached home safely and when Pakistan got this done. They said the Taliban must give this understanding of stopping bloodletting and hostilities. This was not an easy task but this too has happened and the Taliban are willing to end hostilities”.

Senator Rabbani contended that all these were the steps, before taking them, the government or the foreign minister should have placed them before the Parliament or in an in-camera session, or separately before the Senate or the National Assembly, or the Parliamentary panel on security or the relevant standing panels of the two chambers. But this was not done, he noted.

He emphasized that these were serious security matters, which would have impact on Pakistan’s security but the Parliament was not given even this much importance to have taken it on board. “But the minister narrated the role Pakistan had played regarding national security, above the Parliament, which is unacceptable. The consequences of one-sided measures taken by Musharraf are still being borne. Unilateral measures always have repercussions,” he said.

Rabbani urged the chair to summon the foreign minister on Tuesday regarding the disclosures he made in Washington and asked ‘is Pakistan a client state of the United States that he made public these disclosures without going to the Parliament before’. Then, Sanjrani asked the government to convey a message to Qureshi to come to the House.