Shah Mehmood Qureshi tells opposition: Realise sensitivities of virus, don’t risk lives for politics

MULTAN: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said the opposition should understand the sensitivities of coronavirus and should not risk human lives for its politics. He made these remarks while visiting various union councils of his constituency in Multan and meeting delegations, addressing receptions and meeting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers.

The government is not afraid of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) processions, because the processions could not make or break governments. The government is well aware of worth of the human lives. “There is no legal or moral justification for holding a meeting after issuance of the court and government orders, he added. The opposition is pursuing a policy of self-interest, he added.

Qureshi said the opposition only wanted to spread chaos in the country. Their insistence on holding a public meeting is a reflection of their undemocratic thinking and irresponsible behaviour, he said. All political parties, including the opposition, must care about and implement the government issued standard operating procedures (SOPs) regarding coronavirus.

He said the second wave of corona was currently reaching its peak and the government was trying to save precious lives. But at this critical time, the opposition was acting irresponsibly, which was a pity. The opposition should not politicise the issue of corona and demonstrate responsibility.

He said China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a game-changer initiative for Pakistan. Some forces wanted to harm CPEC and they did not want it to reach completion. The future of Pakistan and the region was tied to CPEC, and the government was committed to ensuring its protection. He said China also understands the importance of the economic corridor, so they have given a clear message regarding the security of CPEC. He said they would work with China to protect CPEC and bring these projects to fruition.

He said that Nawaz Sharif had harmed the country by not appointing a foreign minister for four years. Due to poor foreign policy of the previous government, Pakistan was left alone in the world. After becoming the PM, Imran Khan understood the importance of foreign policy and paid attention to it. Because of PTI government’s successful foreign policy, Pakistan was gaining importance in the comity of nations, he added.

He said the visit of prime minister to Afghanistan had been very successful. Pakistan is working for stability of the region, including peace in Afghanistan. The Afghan peace process has entered its final phase. Talks are also under way in Doha. From the very first day, Pakistan's position on Afghan peace was that peace in Afghanistan could only be achieved through dialogue and not through force. In this context, the purpose of Prime Minister Imran Khan's visit to Kabul was to reiterate the message that Pakistan is committed to bringing the Afghan peace process to a logical conclusion and realising the dream of a lasting peace in Afghanistan. He said Pakistan also intended to expand bilateral relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan through a visit to Kabul. “We also had important meetings with the Afghan leadership regarding promotion of bilateral economic cooperation with Afghanistan. In these sessions, Pakistan discussed ways to enhance bilateral multilateral economic cooperation through promotion of transit trade, bilateral trade and regional ties, he added.