Offering all possible help for peace in Afghanistan: Imran

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan Saturday said the issue of Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) was a major impediment to trade cooperation between Pakistan and India, reports the state-run radio.

The premier made the remarks in an interview aired by the Belgian channel VRT.

"Indian forces have turned the entire valley of occupied Kashmir into a jail," PM Imran told the Belgian channel, noting that New Delhi was denying the people of Kashmir their legitimate right to self-determination in line with the resolutions of the United Nations. "India is even going against the promises made by its past leaders in this regard," he said. "I do not see much hope from the current Modi government in India [with regard to resolving the Kashmir issue], because he [Narendra Modi] has an extremist ideology [taken from] the RSS," the premier regretted. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is an extreme right-wing Indian group. Imran noted that the founding fathers of the RSS were inspired by the racist philosophy propagated by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party and this philosophy was the reason why Delhi had put eight million Kashmiris, the vast majority of whom were Muslims, in an open prison.

Criticizing the incumbent Indian government, the prime minister expressed hope that in future an Indian government with a stronger desire for peace would want the occupied Kashmir dispute to be resolved so that the people of the sub-continent could prosper. In addition to highlighting the plight of the people of occupied Kashmir, Imran also spoke about the economic situation of Pakistan. "The last year was very difficult for the government, but the current account deficit has now been brought down by 75 per cent in one year," he outlined.

He added that the economy of Pakistan was showing signs of recovery, and that things would get better this year.

He also spoke about the tourist potential of Pakistan, and the diversity of tourist sites the country offered, as well as climate change and governance issues. Talking about the Afghan peace process, Imran said it was the first time that the process was moving in the right direction.

He said the United States wanted peace and dialogue with the Taliban.

“The Taliban are also now sitting with the Americans. The next phase will be ceasefire and then possibly an agreement,” he said.

Referring to Pakistan’s contributions to the war on terror, the prime minister said 70,000 Pakistanis had lost their lives. He expressed satisfaction that 2019, his first year in power, was the safest year in Pakistan since 9/11.