Reshuffle at Foreign Office

ISLAMABAD: In a reshuffle at the Foreign Office, Syed Faisal Niaz Tirmizi has been made Additional Foreign Secretary for Americas to replace Aftab Ahmad Khokhar who has been appointed as country’s Ambassador for Austria where he will also look after multilateral assignment in Vienna.

Well-placed diplomatic sources told The News that important changes are also taking place in the Foreign Office. Pakistan’s former ambassador for Afghanistan Zahid Nasarullah has become Special Secretary.

Special Secretary Foreign Office Muazzam Ahmad Khan has gone to London as High Commissioner for the United Kingdom and Muhammad Imran Mirza has been given the administration’s slot of the Foreign Office which was Muazzam Ahmad Khan’s responsibility previously.

Imran Mirza will in addition to act as Additional Secretary for special projects. Dr Aman Rasheed will be senior Special Secretary as he will continue to head the affairs for Europe.

Safdar Hayat will be Additional Secretary for Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey while Ali Javed will be Additional Secretary for Africa and Zahoor Ahmad will be Additional Secretary for Asia Pacific. He will be retaining charge of Additional Secretary Legal, SCO/National Coordinator for SCO RATS as well.

Khalid Hussain Memon has become Additional Secretary Middle East. Israr Hussain will continue as Additional Secretary Policy Planning (PP & PD).

In the meanwhile, Pakistan will be appointing new ambassadors in United Arab Emirates (UAE), Spain and France within a couple of weeks.

The incumbent ambassador in the UAE Ghulam Dastgir and ambassador in Spain Khayam Akbar are attaining superannuation within the next quarter.

With the posting of Moinul Haq as ambassador for China, Paris is without Pakistan’s ambassador for three months. The consultation process is underway in the Foreign Office at the highest level for new appointments on the three slots, the sources added.