Decision to release Indian pilot is gesture to de-escalate situation: Qureshi

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Friday said Pakistan desires for peace in the region and decision to release Indian fighter pilot is a gesture to de-escalate the situation between the two neighbours in the South Asia.

In an interview with CNN, he said India had provoked the situation by violating Pakistan’s airspace and international laws.

The foreign minister said Pakistan never wanted escalation as Prime Minister Imran Khan has said several times that we will take two steps, if India takes one.

Qureshi made it clear that Pakistan will not allow any organization or individual to use its soil against any country including India.

Commenting on the Pulwama incident, the FM said if India has solid evidence, it should sit and talk over it with Islamabad.

He said that United Nations and the US can play a significant role in de-escalation of tensions in the region.

Answering a query, the foreign minister said Pakistan was working for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan.

He said President Trump and other high officials have acknowledged and appreciated Pakistan’s efforts toward peace in Afghanistan.

Prime Minister Imran Khan while addressing a joint parliamentary session in the wake of soaring tensions between India and Pakistan, announced to release the captured Indian pilot, Abhinandan, as a gesture of peace.

Wing Commander Abhinandan

Pakistan Air Force (PAF) after striking down two Indian fighter jets arrested a pilot on Feb 27, who ejected himself after being hit in the airspace of Pakistan in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Hours after the arrest, Pakistan military had released a video statement of a captured Indian pilot.

“I’m wing commander Abhinandan and my service number is 27981,” the arrested Indian pilot said in his video statement.

I’m a flying pilot of the Indian air force (IAF), he continued in his statement.

In a video footage, Abhinandan can be seen sharing his views and thanking the Pakistan armed forces for saving his life from the mob at crash site.

The post Decision to release Indian pilot is gesture to de-escalate situation: Qureshi appeared first on ARYNEWS.

Comments

Accountability court hears assets case against Ishaq Dar

ISLAMABAD: An accountability court in Islamabad on Wednesday resumed the hearing of a reference filed against former finance minister Ishaq Dar by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for allegedly accumulating assets beyond his known sources of income. Judge Muhammad Bashir is recording the statement of a prosecution witness, Ishtiaq Ahmed. At the previous hearing, the accountability judge had reserved his verdict on an application filed by two co-accused seeking acquittal in the case. Naeem Mehmood and Mansoor Rizvi, who are directors of Dar’s companies, had filed the application requesting the judge to exonerate them from all charges for want of evidence. Qazi Misbah, the counsel for the two co-accused, contended the prosecution has failed to provide compelling evidence to prove the allegations leveled against his clients. The third co-accused President National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), Saeed Ahmed, had already filed an application before the court for his acquittal wh...

SFA raids several restaurants in Karachi, imposes fine

KARACHI: The Sindh Food Authority (SFA) on Friday raided several restaurants in city’s North Nazimabad area over unhygienic conditions, ARY News reported. According to the SFA, one of the restaurants was found utilizing the used oil multiple times. The items were also not properly frozen while crockery for serving the food was also not clean. The team imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on the restaurant. The SFA team found hygiene standards were sheerly compromised in food making to the core. The food inspectors said they had previously served notices to the food outlets, but the restaurant owners apparently turned a blind eye to it. Raids were also conducted in district Malir and Gulshan-e-Hadeed. Sanitary conditions and lack of fumigation facilities were found at the restaurants in some of the Malir outlets. The SFA team also raided a bakery ‘Friend Bakers’ and imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 over poor hygiene. Similarly another roadside restaurant was fined Rs 20,000 for neglecting he...

Trump says US generals feel Beirut blast was likely an ‘attack’

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump on Tuesday cast a massive explosion in Beirut as a possible attack, despite statements by Lebanese leaders that it was likely caused by highly explosive material that had been stored at warehouses in the capital for years. “The United States stands ready to assist Lebanon,” Trump said at a White House briefing of Tuesday’s explosion, which killed at least 78 people and injured thousands. “It looks like a terrible attack.” When asked later about his depiction of the explosion, Trump said that he had met with some U.S. generals who feel the blast was not “some kind of a manufacturing explosion type of event.” He told reporters that according to these unnamed generals “they seem to think it was an attack. It was a bomb of some kind.” The Pentagon referred questions to the White House. Two U.S. officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said it was unclear where Trump was receiving his information but that initial information did not appear...

Siasat Wala Blog

Search This Blog