Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday welcomed the ceasefire settlement with India however mentioned the onus of making an “enabling environment” for additional progress in bilateral relations rests with New Delhi.
In his first feedback because the militaries of India and Pakistan collectively introduced on Thursday that they’ve agreed to strictly observe all agreements on the ceasefire alongside the Line of Control (LoC) and different sectors, Khan mentioned Pakistan stays prepared to maneuver ahead to resolve “all outstanding issues” with India by way of dialogue.
“I welcome restoration of the ceasefire along the LOC. The onus of creating an enabling environment for further progress rests with India. India must take necessary steps to meet the long-standing demand & right of the Kashmiri people to self determination according to UNSC resolutions,” Khan tweeted.
“We have always stood for peace & remain ready to move forward to resolve all outstanding issues through dialogue,” Khan mentioned in a collection of tweets.
I welcome restoration of the ceasefire alongside the LOC. The onus of making an enabling surroundings for additional progress rests with India. India should take obligatory steps to satisfy the long-standing demand & proper of the Kashmiri individuals to self willpower acc to UNSC resolutions.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) February 27, 2021
India has informed Pakistan that “talks and terror” can’t go collectively and has requested Islamabad to take demonstrable steps towards terror teams chargeable for launching varied assaults on India.
On Thursday, India mentioned it wishes regular neighbourly relations with Pakistan and is dedicated to resolving all points bilaterally in a peaceable method.
“On relations with Pakistan, as we have said earlier, India desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan. We have always maintained that we are committed to addressing issues, if any, in a peaceful and bilateral manner,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava mentioned in New Delhi.
India and Pakistan issued a joint assertion on Thursday to strictly observe all agreements on ceasefire alongside the LoC and different sectors after the hotline discussions by their Director Generals of Military Operations. The resolution by the 2 nations got here into impact from the midnight of February 24/25.
India and Pakistan signed a ceasefire settlement in 2003, nevertheless it has hardly been adopted in letter and spirit over the previous a number of years.
Prime minster Khan’s tweets on Saturday got here on the second anniversary of Pakistan’s retaliatory airstrikes after the Indian Air Force (IAF) fighter jets crossed the LoC and focused a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terror coaching camp at Balakot on February 26, 2019.
The IAF warplanes hit the JeM camp to avenge the killing of 40 Central Reserve Police Force personnel within the Pulwama terror assault. Pakistan Air Force (PAF) retaliated the subsequent day however the IAF foiled the assault.
Khan mentioned Pakistan demonstrated to the world its “responsible behaviour” by returning the captured Indian pilot.
On the Kashmir problem, Khan mentioned, India should take obligatory steps to satisfy the long-standing demand and proper of the Kashmiri individuals to self-determination in response to UN Security Council resolutions.
New Delhi has informed Islamabad that it has no locus standi to touch upon the interior affairs of India, asserting that the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh have been and can stay an integral a part of the nation.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Foreign Office mentioned on Saturday that it was dedicated to peaceable coexistence and backbone of the Kashmir problem as per the UN decision.
“As this day is commemorated, we once again make clear to the world community that Pakistan remains committed to peaceful coexistence and resolution of the long outstanding Jammu & Kashmir dispute in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people,” it mentioned in a press release.
Separately, the PAF organised a particular occasion to mark the second anniversary of its retaliatory strikes.
Addressing the occasion, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan mentioned Pakistan’s need for peace shouldn’t be misunderstood as a weak point, and Islamabad is able to defending itself.
In a press release to mark the occasion, the Pakistan Army mentioned “Pakistan stands for peace but when challenged, shall respond with full might.”
In an editorial, the Dawn newspaper identified that nobody ought to be beneath the phantasm that the bitterness afflicting bilateral ties will magically disappear on the idea of 1 assertion.
“Peace-building is a long and arduous process, and when the relationship is as complex as that of Pakistan and India, things will take time to fall into place,” it mentioned.
The Express Tribune in an editorial termed the ceasefire settlement as a constructive growth. “The deal was long-awaited,” it mentioned, including that the settlement is a win for each nations and exhibits the significance of retaining strains of communication open even when relations are tense.
Ties between India and Pakistan soured after an assault on the Pathankot Air Force base in 2016 by terror teams based mostly within the neighbouring nation. Subsequent assaults, together with one on the Indian Army camp in Uri, additional deteriorated the connection.
The relationship dipped additional after India’s warplanes pounded the JeM camp inside Pakistan in response to the Pulwama terror assault.
The relations nose-dived following the abrogation of Article 370 of India’s Constitution in August, 2019 that revoked the particular standing of Jammu and Kashmir. The transfer angered Pakistan, which downgraded diplomatic ties with India and expelled the Indian High Commissioner in Islamabad. Pakistan additionally snapped all air and land hyperlinks with India and suspended commerce and railway companies.
In June final 12 months, India requested Pakistan to cut back the employees in its mission in New Delhi by half and introduced a reciprocal trimming of employees energy in its excessive fee in Islamabad. India mentioned its resolution to downgrade the diplomatic ties was based mostly on cases of involvement of Pakistani officers in “acts of espionage” and “dealings with terrorist organisations”.
