India's belligerence poses serious threat to regional peace, security: FM Qureshi

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi reiterated on Tuesday that India's belligerence posed a serious threat to peace and security in the region.

Addressing the virtual meeting of Conservative Friends of Pakistan, the foreign minister said he had written a number of letters to the United Nation’s Secretary-General António Guterres and the president of the Security Council on India’s posture.

Talking about India's blatant human rights violations in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), FM Qureshi added that on the August 5 last year, New Delhi illegally and unilaterally attempted to alter the disputed status of the territory in clear violations of international laws.

“India has deployed additional troops in the area which is already the most militarized zone in the world,” he said. “Kashmiri leaders are incarcerated whilst extrajudicial killings of innocent young Kashmiri are tactics used to break the will of the people fighting for their right to self-determination.”

The foreign minister further added that the facts were well documented in reports of human rights organisations. India should be pressurised to stop human rights violations in the occupied territory and move towards resolution of the Kashmir dispute as per the UN Security Council resolutions, he added.

Talking about the commencement of intra-Afghan dialogue, the FM said that its initiation was a significant and positive development for regional peace and added that Pakistan had facilitated the US-Taliban peace agreement signed in Doha early this year.

On the domestic front, Qureshi said the things have started improving due to the structural reforms initiated by the present government regardless of the challenge posed by Covid-19.

He also said that Pakistan recorded current account surplus for the first time in many years whilst other economic indicators were also showing improvement

“Our domestic tax collection has increased by thirty per cent. The remittances for the first time crossed $20 billion. The confidence of investors is improving as a result of our policies,” he said.

Regarding bilateral relations with the United Kingdom, the foreign minister said both the countries were in agreement to further build on the excellent relationship and explore new areas of cooperation.