NEW YORK, United States: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said that the recent threatening statements from the Indian government will put in danger regional peace and stability.
His statement came while talking to Saudi Crown Prince and Deputy Prime Minister Prince Muhammad Bin Naif Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud in New York on Tuesday in an apparent reference to the Indian government top officials such as Home Minister Rajnath Singh who called Pakistan a terrorist state and accused it for being involved in Sunday’s attack on an Indian military base in Uri, a town in Indian held Kashmir.
During the meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince and Deputy Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif was assisted by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Syed Tariq Fatemi and Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry.
The two sides also exchanged views on the regional situation, particularly peace efforts in Afghanistan, as well as Syria, Iraq and Yemen. Other issues that were discussed during the meeting included energy cooperation, economic ties, as well as the role of the Pakistani community in Saudi Arabia.
Both leaders expressed satisfaction on the excellent state of bilateral ties between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, which are both important pillars of the Muslim world.
The prime minister highlighted the need to forge unity and harmony within the Muslim world. He reaffirmed Pakistan’s unequivocal support for protection of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Saudi Arabia against any threat.
Nawaz Sharif raised the state atrocities in the Indian occupied Jammu & Kashmir during the meeting and said that the entire state of Jammu & Kashmir has been reduced to a jail by the Indian Occupation forces.
The prime minister stressed that the international community needs to realize the gravity of the issue and should play its role to resolve this political issue through dialogue according to the wishes and aspirations of the people of Jammu & Kashmir in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.
Kashmiri people must be allowed to decide about their destiny, the prime minister said and called for the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and other Muslim countries to raise their voice for their brothers and sisters in Kashmir Valley, whose fundamental human rights have been desecrated by Indian security personnel through use of brute force.
The prime minister also shared details with the Saudi Crown Prince of Pakistan’s successful Operation Zarb-e-Azb against terrorists as well as the National Action Plan which is aimed at eliminating extremism from the country. He said that there was a need for a collective response by the Muslim world to defeat and eliminate this threat from the region.
