Mehmood Qureshi asks Bilawal to avoid promoting hate among provinces

MULTAN: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Monday said Pakistan is facilitating Afghan peace process, which is the top most agenda of the region.

Addressing a press conference at the Multan Circuit House, he said an important development took place on Sunday when Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah signed a power sharing agreement. He deplored terrorism incidents in Kabul and Nangarhar, saying that Pakistan would eliminate terrorism in collaboration with the Afghan leadership on a permanent basis.

He said the world must take notice of Indian aggression against Muslim population under the pretext of Covid-19. India is trying to convert Kashmir into a Muslim minority state by inducting domicile laws. India should expect a befitting response to any possible misadventure it initiates, he said, adding that the situation in Occupied Kashmir is not hidden from anyone in the world. It was expected that India would soften its aggressive stance in the Muslim-majority region, but, unfortunately, that did not happen. The Himalayan region has been under a brutal curfew and communications blackout for more than nine months since August 5, 2019, when India scrapped its special status. "India should expect a befitting response to any possible misadventure," the minister added. "Pakistan has been warning the world that there are people who are harming the peace process."

The foreign minister commented on the ongoing coronavirus crisis as well, saying that if there is any sector that could get Pakistan out of the pandemic, it is agriculture. "We hope that the reduction in diesel prices would help the agriculture sector," he said. "A package worth Rs 65 billion is being introduced to cut down the prices of fertilizer."

He said thousands of Pakistanis stranded abroad due to suspension of international flights have been brought back by the government and that another 110,000 Pakistanis wish to return. However, quarantining those who are returning from foreign countries is "a major issue", Qureshi noted.

He said the sugar mafia report has been made public and that a forensic examination is being carried out in response to questions that arose following its release. The forensic report, he added, could be released any time since the team involved had asked for an additional three-week period, which ended on Sunday.

On the death of the Chinese ambassador to Israel, Du Wei, he said he would not make any speculations at the moment. The Chinese ambassador was found dead on Sunday at his residence on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.

Qureshi said Bilawal Bhutto Zardari should not behave like kids. Bilawal must care about Benazir Bhutto's narrative of strong federation. He said he knew Bilawal since his childhood, so he would advise him to avoid promoting hate among provinces. Benazir Bhutto was known as a symbol of federation. He asked Bilawal to advocate for Pakistan instead of playing the Sindh card.

Responding to a query on the 18th Amendment, he said the PTI is not ambitious to amend the 18th Amendment. The PPP in Sindh is playing politics in the name of the 18th Amendment. The PTI government lacks two-thirds majority in the National Assembly and Senate, so it cannot wish to change the 18th Amendment.