Pakistan has reaffirmed its commitment to engage with Afghanistan on all aspects of cooperation and concern including issues relating to terror threats. At her weekly news briefing in Islamabad on Thursday, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch urged the Afghan authorities to fulfill their promises that their soil will not be used for terrorism against Pakistan. She said it is their responsibility to ensure that their land is not used against Pakistan, and Afghan authorities have accepted this responsibility on various occasions. On the situation in the Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said since 5th August 2019, over seven hundred and eighty Kashmiri people have been martyred by the Indian occupation forces.

She said India's unabated repression over the last seven decades has failed to break the will of Kashmiri people for the right to self-determination. She said Pakistan will continue to support its Kashmiri brothers and sisters in their just struggle against Indian oppression till the realization of their inalienable right to self-determination as enshrined in the UN Security Council Resolutions.

Responding to a question, the spokesperson said Indus Water Treaty is an important document that has served both Pakistan and India. She said Pakistan is committed to its full implementation and hoped India will remain committed to it. The Spokesperson said the UN Human Rights Council recently adopted a historic resolution presented by Pakistan on the behalf of the OIC which condemned any advocacy of religious hatred including the recent acts of desecration of Holy Quran and underscored the need for holding the perpetrators to account. She said Pakistan shared the disappointment of the OIC countries that despite its balanced and apolitical nature, this important resolution was put to vote on fallacious grounds, derailing the council's consensus.

She said Pakistan believes that the Human Rights Council must speak with one voice on the issue of Islamophobia which affects human rights, fundamental freedoms, dignity and identity of over two billion Muslims. She said Pakistan will continue to take lead in raising global awareness about Islamophobia and Xenophobia and fostering interfaith dialogue, harmony and peaceful coexistence.

 Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said that Azerbaijan's Minister for Digital Development and Transport will undertake a three day visit to Pakistan from Monday next.  She said the visiting Minister will meet with Pakistani counterparts in the ministries of Information Technology, Aviation, Communications, Railways and Maritime Affairs and explore bilateral cooperation in the areas of connectivity and Information Technology.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-INP