FM Qureshi refuses to attend OIC conference

ISLAMABAD - Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi said on Friday that he would not attend the meeting of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers being held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The OIC meeting is scheduled to start from March 1-2.

Speaking in Joint Sitting of the Parliament, he said the lower level Pakistani delegation will attend the OIC meeting as we have to move over 19 resolutions in OIC meeting, out of which many resolutions were pertaining to Indian brutalities in Indian occupied Kashmir and human right violations there.

Pakistan will also oppose giving observer status to India.

He said the foreign minister of Turkey would also support Pakistan in this regard. He said Pakistan will welcome meditation offer from anywhere and ready to resolve issues through dialogue.

He welcomed mediation proposals of United Nations General Secretary, Russia saying Pakistan is ready to sit across the table. He invited UNSG to visit Pakistan.

Pakistan was ready for dialogue with India. Referring to his recent visit of Russia he said he had discussed the dangers of any adventurism by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi even before the Pulwama incident to win the elections.

Qureshi said India was neither a member of OIC nor observer, yet was invited that too without consulting Pakistan. Brother countries Turkey and Iran also did not know about the invitation to India to attend the OIC session as a guest of honour.

He said he had written a letter to Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) urging him to review his decision of invitation to India to attend OIC session or postpone the meeting.

In response, Sheikh Abdullah expressed his inability to withdraw the invitation as India was invited before Pulwama incident.