ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said that Pakistan does not abandon friends and strategic partners especially at a time when their security is under threat.
“Saudi Arabia is one of the most important strategic allies of Pakistan,” the prime minister said while clarifying Pakistan’s position on different dimensions of Yemen crisis in Islamabad on Monday evening.
In his address, the prime minister reaffirmed that Pakistan’s long term commitment to Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and stability is the main pillar of our foreign policy.
“Pakistan attaches importance to sanctity of the two holy mosques and full support to their custodian,” the prime minister said.
“We stand by Saudi Arab, and any threat to Saudi’s territorial integrity will evoke a strong response from Pakistan,” he added.
On Friday, the joint session of the Parliament unanimously passed a resolution, urging the federal government to maintain neutrality in the Yemen conflict. However, lawmakers expressed unequivocal support to Saudi Arabia in case of any threat to its territorial integrity or Haramain Sharifain.
In his policy statement, the prime minister in his address upheld the resolution adopted recently by the joint session of the Parliament, and called for resolving the Yemen crisis through dialogue.
The prime minister said the resolution passed by the Parliament on April 10 fully endorses these principles and strengthens the hands to the government for playing a positive and constructive role.
Nawaz Sharif said that Pakistan will continue to pursue the policy of friendly ties with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.
The premier said that he conveyed to the Iranian Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif during his recent visit to Pakistan that violent overthrow of legitimate government of Yemen had set a dangerous precedent that was fraught with serious risks for the entire region.
Sharif said that he urged that the Islamic Republic of Iran should use its influence to bring Houthi rebels to the negotiating table.
“Pakistan strongly condemns actions of Houthi rebels and other non-state actors to overthrow the legitimate government of Yemen,” he further said.
Moreover, he announced that Pakistan would intensify its diplomatic efforts in coming days in consultations with leadership of Saudi Arabia to resolve Yemeni crisis.
Earlier, the prime minister presided over a consultative meeting in Islamabad to discuss the situation in the Middle East with emphasis on Yemen.
The meeting was attended by the Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Prime Minister’s Advisor on Foreign Affairs and National Security Sartaj Aziz, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi, Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif and Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry.
