ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said that Pakistan welcomes the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ offer of his good offices in resolving outstanding issues between Pakistan and India.
Talking to media in Islamabad on Tuesday after the Concluding Ceremony of the two-day International Refugee Summit marking 40 years of Afghan Refugees’ presence in Pakistan, Qureshi said that the Indian reaction to the UN secretary general’s offer shows India is avoiding resolution of the outstanding issues.
The foreign minister reiterated that Kashmir is an international issue and India cannot enforce its illegal unilateral decisions there.
Earlier addressing the Concluding Session of the Refugee Summit Islamabad, Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that the participants of the Conference applauded the unparalleled solidarity and hospitality of Pakistan and Iran, and commended their inclusive policies towards Afghan refugees.
The Refugee Summit Islamabad recognized and highly appreciated Pakistan’s generosity and progressive policies that have enabled millions of Afghan refugees and nationals to access refuge, health, education, livelihood and social mobility without any discrimination.
The participants stressed that the ultimate solution lies in Afghanistan and that voluntary repatriation and sustainable reintegration is the preferred solution for the majority of Afghan refugees.
The participants also highlighted that to enable sustainable return and reintegration, a pre-requisite would be a comprehensive Afghan led and Afghan owned peace process and urgent investment in the priority areas of return.
The Conference acknowledged that the Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity could yield peace dividends for the entire region, provided that there is a firm political will to implement it.
