Pakistan reaffirms multilateral cooperation for preventing conflict

Pakistan on Wednesday reaffirmed its commitment to multilateral cooperation for preserving peace, preventing conflict and realizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The resolve was expressed by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi while speaking at a virtual High-Level Replenishment Conference for UN Secretary General’s Peace-building fund.

FM Qureshi also announced a token contribution of $25,000 to the Secretary General’s Peace-building fund.

“The pledge underscores Pakistan’s longstanding political, human and financial commitment to UN’s endeavours in peacekeeping and peace-building,” the FM said.

The foreign minister added that as a major troop and police-contributing country, Pakistan took pride in its rich UN peacekeeping history.

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“Over the last 60 years, Pakistan's peacekeepers have represented the blue flag in 46 UN Missions across four continents of the world,” he said.

Meanwhile, talking to the media at Parliament House, the FM Qureshi rejected any possibility of bilateral trade with India.

“Kashmir is not an internal issue of India but an internationally recognised dispute,” the FM reiterated adding that Pakistan had raised the issue of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) at international fora including the United Nations.

About Afghanistan, the FM said there was no military solution to the Afghan issue and comprehensive dialogue was the only way forward.

“Priorities of the new US administration are in line with our vision we will continue to work for peace with it,” he said.