Pakistan not facing any isolation at diplomatic front: Sartaj Aziz

ISLAMABAD - Rejecting the view about the country’s isolation at diplomatic front, Advisor to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz on Thursday said, with the major re-alignments underway at global and geo-strategic levels, Pakistan was moving in the right direction.

Development of Eurasia by Russia and China, activation of SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization), formation of AIB (Asian Investment Bank) etc. indicated major re-alignments, he said while talking to a private television.

Sartaj Aziz said the cause of concern in the Western countries about Pakistan was its growing relations and cooperation with China.

He said Pakistan was pursuing various connectivity projects in the region such as CASA-1000 (Central Asia South Asia) electricity transmission line, TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) gas pipeline etc. and would become permanent member of SCO next year.

The Advisor on Foreign Affairs, however, added that Pakistan also enjoyed good bilateral ties with US, UK, European Union, Middle East and other regions of the world.

To a question about Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif’s address to UN General Assembly, he said, the issue of Kashmir and the continued human rights violations in the Indian Occupied Kashmir were focussed in the address.

In response to a question, Sartaj Aziz said there was no back-door or track-II diplomacy going on between Pakistan and India, as such kind of contacts were established on the desire of two sides.

He also recollected how the Composite Dialogue Process between the two countries was discontinued and said India had the habit of blaming Pakistan after every terrorist incident in their country without providing any solid evidence.

To a question about the Indian involvement in Balochistan and the arrest of Indian agent Kulbushan Yadev, the Advisor on Foreign Affairs said Pakistan would soon present a dossier on this issue to the UN Secretary General.

About PTI’s planned rally in Islamabad, Sartaj Aziz said it was the beauty of democracy that issues should be debated and resolved through the forum of Parliament.

To another question, the Advisor was confident that the present government will complete its tenure.

–APP