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Tag: india pakistan relations

  • Pakistan appears for peace with all its neighbours together with India: PM Shehbaz at UN

    Pakistan is on the lookout for peace with all its neighbours, together with India however sustainable peace and stability in South Asia stay contingent on a simply and lasting answer to the Kashmir dispute, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif mentioned right here on Friday.

    Speaking on the UN General Assembly, Shehbaz claimed that India’s “illegal and unilateral” actions on August 5, 2019 to alter the particular standing of Jammu and Kashmir additional undermined the prospects of peace and infected regional tensions.

    “Pakistan needs a stable external environment. We look for peace with all our neighbours, including India. Sustainable peace and stability in South Asia, however, remains contingent upon a just and lasting solution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute,” he mentioned.

    #WATCH | Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif rakes up Kashmir challenge at #UNGA; , “…We look for peace with all our neighbours, incl India. Sustainable peace & stability in South Asia however remains contingent upon a just & lasting solution of Jammu & Kashmir dispute…”

    (Source: UN TV) pic.twitter.com/kxmYV1EZQJ

    — ANI (@ANI) September 23, 2022

    “I think it’s high time that India understood this message loud and clear that both countries are armed to the teeth. War is not an option. It is not an option. Only peaceful dialogue can resolve these issues so that the world becomes more peaceful in time to come,” he mentioned.

    India has repeatedly instructed Pakistan that Jammu and Kashmir “was, is and shall forever” stay an integral a part of the nation. India has mentioned it needs regular neighbourly relations with Pakistan in an atmosphere freed from terror, hostility and violence.

    The ties between India and Pakistan nosedived after New Delhi abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution.

    India’s resolution evoked sturdy reactions from Pakistan, which downgraded diplomatic ties and expelled the Indian envoy.

    Shehbaz mentioned that New Delhi has ramped up its navy deployments in Jammu and Kashmir, thus making it the “most militarised zone in the world,” he mentioned.

    He mentioned the Pakistani individuals have at all times stood by Kashmiris in full solidarity and can proceed to take action.

    “I assured the World Forum that we in Pakistan remain consistent in our commitment to peace in South Asia. India must take reasonable steps to create an enabling environment for constructive engagement,” he mentioned.

    “We are neighbours and we’re there perpetually. The alternative is ours. Whether we reside in peace or carry on combating with one another. We have had three wars from 1947 onwards. And as a consequence, solely distress, poverty and unemployment have elevated on either side.

    Shehbaz mentioned each India and Pakistan shouldn’t waste their assets in shopping for extra ammunition and making an attempt to advertise pressure.

    “It’s now up to us to resolve our differences, our problems or issues like peaceful neighbours through peaceful negotiations and discussions and save our scarce resources for promoting education and health and employment to millions of people,” he mentioned.

  • No indication firing of missile from India into Pak something aside from accident: US

    The United States has mentioned there isn’t any indication that the current firing of a missile from India which landed in Pakistan was something aside from unintentional.

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    India on Friday mentioned it by accident fired a missile two days again that landed in Pakistan and that the “deeply regrettable” incident was attributable to a technical malfunction in the middle of its routine upkeep.

    “We have no indication as you also heard from our Indian partners that this incident was anything other than an accident,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price advised reporters at his day by day information convention on Monday.

    “We refer you of course to the Indian Ministry of Defense for any follow up. They issued a statement on March 9th to explain precisely what had happened. We don’t have a comment beyond that,” Price mentioned in response to a query.

  • India, Pak Foreign ministers in UAE on separate bilateral visits

    Days after a prime diplomat from the United Arab Emirates confirmed that the nation was enjoying a job in bringing Delhi and Islamabad to the talks desk, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi are visiting the UAE for what’s being described as separate bilateral visits.
    While Jaishankar shall be in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, Qureshi was in Dubai on Saturday on a three-day bilateral go to.
    Sources in New Delhi and Islamabad, nonetheless, mentioned there are not any bilateral conferences scheduled to this point between the 2.
    This is the second time they are going to be in the identical nation for a go to in lower than three weeks – each had been in Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe for the Heart of Asia assembly on March 30.
    Jaishankar has been invited to Abu Dhabi by UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
    “At the invitation of his counterpart, EAM @DrSJaishankar will be visiting Abu Dhabi on 18th April 2021. His discussions will focus on economic cooperation and community welfare,” MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted Saturday.
    Qureshi tweeted, “Good to be in the #UAE and to have met the Pakistan Business Council Dubai for a constructive session on #EconomicDiplomacy. The Pakistani community in UAE continue to play a positive role across all echelons of business & work with great contributions to the development” of Pakistan-UAE ties.
    Jaishankar and Qureshi will each meet their UAE counterpart.
    Earlier this week, the UAE’s envoy to the US had mentioned that his nation is mediating between India and Pakistan to assist the beighbours attain a “healthy and functional” relationship. Ambassador Yousef Al Otaiba mentioned: “We try to be helpful, where we have influence with two different countries, so India-Pakistan was the most recent one.”
    He cited media experiences which he mentioned “highlighted the role the UAE played in bringing the Kashmir escalation down and sort of created a ceasefire, hopefully, ultimately leading to restoring diplomats and getting the relationship back to a healthy level”.

    In a dialog on Wednesday with former US National Security Advisor H R McMaster below the aegis of Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, the UAE envoy, in response to query whether or not his nation was making an attempt to assist the 2 nations have a greater relationship, mentioned: “Absolutely. They might not sort of become best friends, but at least we want to get it to a level where it’s functional, where it’s operational…that’s our goal.”

    Officials say India and Pakistan have been “carefully optimistic” of the steps taken in latest months. The February announcement to stick to the ceasefire pact, the Indus Water Treaty talks in March after over two years, and calls for inside Pakistan to import cotton and sugar from India have made the 2 sides take a look at the following steps of engagement.
    This official affirmation from the UAE got here the day Reuters reported that prime intelligence officers from India’s R&AW and Pakistan’s ISI held secret talks in Dubai in January in contemporary effort to calm navy tensions over Jammu and Kashmir.

  • Helping India, Pak get to degree the place they communicate to one another, confirms UAE

    In the primary official affirmation of the United Arab Emirates taking part in a job in bringing Delhi and Islamabad to the talks desk, the UAE’s envoy to the US has stated that his nation is mediating between India and Pakistan to assist them attain a “healthy and functional” relationship.
    Ambassador Yousef Al Otaiba stated: “We try to be helpful, where we have influence with two different countries, so India-Pakistan was the most recent one.” He cited media experiences which he stated “highlighted the role the UAE played in bringing the Kashmir escalation down and sort of created a ceasefire, hopefully, ultimately leading to restoring diplomats and getting the relationship back to a healthy level”.
    In a dialog Wednesday with former US National Security Advisor H R McMaster below the aegis of Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, the UAE envoy, in response to query whether or not his nation was making an attempt to assist the 2 international locations have a greater relationship, stated: “Absolutely. They might not sort of become best friends, but at least we want to get it to a level where it’s functional, where it’s operational, where they are speaking to each other, where there’s lines of communication and that’s our goal.”

    “You know we don’t think they’re going to become, you know, Most Favoured Nations with each other, but I think it’s important for them to have a healthy, functional relationship, which is exactly our objective,” Al Otaiba stated

    ExplainedTreading gingerlyOfficials say India and Pakistan have been “carefully optimistic” of the steps taken in current months. The February announcement to stick to the ceasefire pact, the Indus Water Treaty talks in March after over two years, and calls for inside Pakistan to import cotton and sugar from India have made the 2 sides have a look at the subsequent steps of engagement.

    The dialogue was on the theme ‘UAE: US Policy In The Middle East And Prospects For Peace And Economic Growth In A Troubled Region’.
    This official affirmation got here on the day the Reuters information company reported that high intelligence officers from India’s R&AW and Pakistan’s ISI held secret talks in Dubai in January in a brand new effort to calm navy tensions over Jammu and Kashmir.

    In February, the militaries of India and Pakistan introduced adherence to ceasefire agreements alongside the Line of Control — an indication of thaw amid the chilliness in ties.
    Soon after, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan “welcomed” the ceasefire settlement with India.
    This, in line with sources, was doable since India and Pakistan have been holding back-channel talks for the final three months resulting in the February announcement, with NSA Ajit Doval main the Indian initiative with Pakistan’s civilian-military management.
    Sources stated whereas Doval had met his counterpart Moeed Yusuf, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Imran Khan on safety affairs, in a 3rd nation, he had additionally saved communication channels open with Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa. Yusuf, due to his proximity to Khan in addition to the navy, and Bajwa, because of the energy the Pakistani Army wields, have been each essential hyperlinks within the chain.

    Last month, the 2 Prime Ministers exchanged messages after Prime Minister Narendra Modi despatched greetings on Pakistan’s National Day on March 23.
    Ties between India and Pakistan have been frozen since 2016, and the Pulwama terror assault in February 2019 worsened the state of affairs. This was adopted by the Balakot airstrikes, retaliatory strikes by Pakistan and the seize of an Indian pilot who was later launched.
    In August 2019, after India revoked the particular standing of J&Okay below Article 370, and bifurcated the state into two Union Territories, Pakistan downgraded diplomatic ties, forcing India to do the identical. This additionally led to snapping of commerce ties.

  • US says continues to help direct dialogue between India and Pakistan

    The United States on Tuesday mentioned that it encourages India and Pakistan to have a direct dialogue between them on problems with concern.
    However, the State Department avoided commenting on the current resolution of the Pakistani Cabinet to not import sugar and cotton from India.
    “I wouldn’t want to comment on that specifically,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price advised reporters at his each day information convention.

    “What I would say is that we continue to support direct dialogue between India and Pakistan on issues of concern,” Price mentioned in response to a query.

    In a volte-face, Pakistan’s Cabinet on April 1 rejected the proposal of a high-powered committee to import cotton and sugar from India, with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi asserting that there may be no normalisation of ties till New Delhi reverses its resolution to revoke the particular standing of Jammu and Kashmir.

  • ‘India desires cordial relations with Pakistan’, PM Modi writes to Imran Khan: Report

    India needs cordial relations with Pakistan however an environment of belief, devoid of terror and hostility, is “imperative” for it, Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned in a letter to his Pakistani counterpart Imran Khan.
    Modi wrote the letter to Khan to increase greetings to the folks of that nation on the event of Pakistan Day.
    “As a neighbouring country, India desires cordial relations with the people of Pakistan. For this, an environment of trust, devoid of terror and hostility, is imperative,” he mentioned.
    Government sources mentioned it’s a routine letter despatched yearly.
    Modi additionally conveyed his greatest needs to Khan and the folks of Pakistan in coping with the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic.
    There have been indications of optimistic motion in ties between India and Pakistan.
    Last month, the Indian and Pakistani armies recommitted themselves to the 2003 ceasefire on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir.

    On Monday, a delegation of Pakistani officers arrived in India for a gathering of the everlasting Indus fee. It is the primary such dialogue in over two-and-a-half years.
    Last week, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla mentioned India needs good neighbourly ties with Pakistan and is dedicated to addressing points, if any, bilaterally however added that any significant dialogue can solely be held in a conducive ambiance.
    He mentioned the onus is on Islamabad to create such an environment.
    The relations between the 2 international locations nosedived after India withdrew particular standing of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcated the state into two union territories in 2019.

    Pakistan Day is widely known to mark the Lahore Resolution on March 23 1940 when the All-India Muslim League demanded a separate nation for the Muslims of India.
    It is learnt {that a} separate message was despatched by President Ram Nath Kovind to his Pakistani counterpart Arif Alvi.

  • Secret India-Pakistan peace roadmap brokered by high UAE royals: Report

    About 24 hours after navy chiefs from India and Pakistan shocked the world final month with a uncommon joint dedication to respect a 2003 cease-fire settlement, the highest diplomat of the United Arab Emirates popped over to New Delhi for a fast one-day go to.The official UAE readout of the Feb. 26 assembly gave few clues of what Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed spoke about with Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, noting they “discussed all regional and international issues of common interest and exchanged views on them.”
    Yet behind closed doorways, the India-Pakistan cease-fire marked a milestone in secret talks brokered by the UAE that started months earlier, in accordance with officers conscious of the scenario who requested to not be recognized. The ceasefire, one mentioned, is barely the start of a bigger roadmap to forge an enduring peace between the neighbors, each of which have nuclear weapons and spar commonly over a decades-old territory dispute.
    The subsequent step within the course of, the official mentioned, entails either side reinstating envoys in New Delhi and Islamabad, who have been pulled in 2019 after Pakistan protested India’s transfer to revoke seven many years of autonomy for the disputed Muslim-majority state of Jammu and Kashmir. Then comes the laborious half: Talks on resuming commerce and an enduring decision on Kashmir, the topic of three wars since India and Pakistan grew to become impartial from Britain in 1947.
    Over the years, India and Pakistan have routinely made peace overtures solely to have them rapidly fall via, notably as either side steadily use the difficulty to fire up feelings round election time. Officials mentioned expectations have been low that the present detente would obtain a lot past the return of envoys and a resumption of commerce via their Punjab land border.

    But this course of seems to be essentially the most concerted effort in years, and comes because the Biden administration is looking for wider peace talks on Afghanistan — a spot each international locations for years have battled for affect. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi desires to shore up development and focus navy assets on the border with China, whereas Pakistan’s leaders are additionally going through financial woes and trying to make a superb impression with the U.S. and different powers.
    Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry didn’t touch upon the talks or the position of the UAE, whereas the overseas ministries of India and the UAE had no fast remark.
    Last week Pakistan military chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa requested India “to bury the past and move forward” whereas saying the navy was able to enter talks to resolve “all our outstanding issues.” The feedback got here a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan after referred to as for a decision on Kashmir, which he described as “the one issue that holds us back.”
    On Saturday, Modi despatched a tweet wishing Khan properly after he was identified with Covid-19 — one other signal that relations between the international locations are getting hotter.
    The UAE, which has historic commerce and diplomatic hyperlinks with India and Pakistan, has taken a extra assertive worldwide position beneath de facto ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The greatest shift has been within the Middle East the place the Gulf Arab state has intervened in conflicts and backed teams and regional leaders. But it has additionally seemed to Asia because it strengthens political alliances past its position as a worldwide commerce and logistics hub.
    India-Pakistan ties have been successfully minimize off two years in the past after a suicide assault in India-controlled Kashmir killed 40 Indian troopers, prompting Modi’s authorities to authorize air strikes on alleged terror services inside Pakistan. The joint assertion final month mentioned the 2 sides “agreed to address each other’s core issues,” signaling a wider dialogue on Kashmir and terrorism.
    Several clues over the previous few months pointed on the UAE’s position. In November, Jaishankar met bin Zayed and the crown prince on a two-day go to to Abu Dhabi, adopted by Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi the next month. Roughly two weeks earlier than the Feb. 25 announcement, the UAE overseas minister held a cellphone name with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan “wherein they discussed regional and international issues of interest.” And simply days earlier than, India allowed Khan’s plane to fly over Indian airspace as he headed to Sri Lanka for a state go to — a apply suspended because the 2019 hostilities.

    After the cease-fire, the UAE was one in all a handful of nations to challenge an announcement welcoming the cease-fire announcement, highlighting the “close historical ties” it has with each India and Pakistan and hailing “the efforts made by both countries to come to this agreement.” In Washington, State Department spokesman Ned Price dodged a query on what position the U.S. performed in bringing the 2 sides collectively whereas urging Pakistan to play a constructive position in Afghanistan, Kashmir and different locations.
    “Obviously Pakistan has an important role to play when it comes to Afghanistan and what takes place across its other border,” Price mentioned on Feb. 25. “So clearly, we will be paying close attention.”

  • Indian lady Geeta reunites with actual mom, confirms Pak belief proprietor who gave her shelter

    A deaf and dumb Indian lady, who was rescued by a social welfare organisation in Pakistan after she mistakenly ended up on this nation earlier than being despatched again to India in 2015, has lastly been reunited along with her actual mom in Maharashtra, in accordance with a Pakistani media report on Wednesday.
    Bilquees Edhi the spouse of late Abdul Sattar Edhi, who now runs the world well-known Edhi Welfare Trust and who developed an in depth bond with Geeta stated the Indian lady had lastly been reunited along with her actual mom in Maharashtra state, Dawn newspaper reported.
    “She has been in touch with me and this weekend she finally told me the good news about meeting her real mother,” Bilquees stated.
    “Her real name is Radha Waghmare and she found her mother in Naigaon village in the state of Maharashtra,” she additionally confirmed to PTI right here.
    Geeta captured the eye of the media and governments in each international locations in 2015 however in accordance with Bilquees that they had discovered Geeta when she was round 11-12 years outdated at a railway station and gave her shelter at their centre in Karachi.
    “Somehow she strayed into Pakistan and was shelterless when we found her in Karachi,” she stated.

    “She stayed at the Edhi centre for years and I took care of her and we named her Fatima later when I realised she was a Hindu we named her Geeta and even though she couldn’t speak or hear but we communicated properly through sign language,” Bilquees stated.
    In 2015 after Geeta’s story broke out, the late Indian exterior affairs minister, Sushma Swaraj made preparations for her to be flown again house.
    Bilquees stated that it had taken practically 4 and half years for Geeta to seek out her actual dad and mom and this was confirmed by means of DNA exams.

    “Geeta has also recognised her mother and she lives with her family in Naigaon village now. Her biological father died a few years back so her mother, Meena remarried,” she stated.
    Bilquees Edhi stated she was simply glad that Geeta who was like a daughter to her had lastly reunited along with her actual household.
    “To be lost for such a long time from your family is difficult for anyone and especially for someone special like Geeta,” she added.

  • ‘Coming back is second birth for me’: Kutch man returns house after 13 years in Pak jail

    Residents of Nana Dinara and surrounding villages on the Indo-Pakistan border in Bhuj taluka of Kutch district erupted in pleasure and a festive temper prevailed as Ismail Sama, the cattle-herder who went lacking in 2008, returned house on Friday after spending 13 years in a Pakistan jail.
    Relatives flocked round Ismail as he received out of the automobile pushed by his step-brother Junas at round nightfall. Emotions ran excessive because the 50-year-old embraced his sons.

    Minutes later, he was led to an area mosque the place an enormous crowd cheered him. He was seated in the midst of circles shaped by younger and previous.
    “After the Pakistani rangers caught me and intelligence agencies tortured me, suspecting me to be an Indian mole, I thought I may never return… I didn’t even dare think about home, as that would make me sad and drive me mad, as happens with many Indians held in Pakistan. I used to pray to Allah and he answered my prayers. Coming back home is second birth for me,” Ismail, who has had no formal schooling, informed The Indian Express at his house in Allaiya Vandh space of Nana Dinara.
    Nana Dinara is round 50 km from the Indo-Pakistan border.
    Ismail had gone lacking in August, 2008, whereas grazing his herd of cows. “A scorpion stung me and I felt giddy. I lost my direction. Next morning, around 10.30 am, Pakistan rangers caught me, telling me I had intruded into their country. They took me to hospital and after my condition improved, they handed me over to Inter Services Intelligence (ISI),” stated Ismail, son of a farmer.
    Adding that the ISI tortured him for six months, Ismail stated, “They wanted me to confess that I was an Indian spy but I refused as I was not one. I told them that Allah was my protector and that I would prefer death over telling a lie… Then, they offered to let go of me if I worked for them, which was out of question.”
    The father of 5 sons and three daughters was saved in a Pakistani navy facility in Hyderabad for 3 years earlier than a court docket convicted him of espionage and sentenced him to 5 years imprisonment in 2011, when he was shifted to Hyderabad Central Jail.
    “I was kept with other Indians and Pakistanis suspected of being Indian agents. After my jail term got over, I was shifted to Karachi Central Jail. I applied four times to be shifted to Landhi jail where Indian fishermen are held. But none of them were accepted,” says Ismail.
    He stated that to forestall recollections of house from haunting him, he received busy with work. “I learnt beadwork from other Pakistani inmates and kept myself busy as much as possible. When I was not working, I just prayed,” says Ismail, whereas ruffling the hair of Altaf, his youngest son, who was not even born when he was caught. Two of his youngsters received married in his absence.
    It was solely in 2014 that he was granted consular entry by Pakistan whilst his household didn’t have any details about him. “I got fellow prisoners to write letters to my family from jail. I wrote 15 letters but I am learning it now that none was ever delivered,” he says.
    His case was taken up with the Indian authorities by Mumbai-based activist Jatin Desai who was related to the Indian chapter of Pakistan-India People’s Forum for Peace and Democracy (PIPFPD).
    Ismail’s spouse Kamabai got here to know that her husband was in a Pakistani jail solely when Rafiq Jat, a local of close by village returned from Pakistan in 2017 and knowledgeable that he and Ismail had been collectively within the jail.
    After this revelation, Fazalla Sama, a social employee from Nana Dinara, and deputy sarpanch of the village took up his case, by writing letters to Indian and Pakistani governments and demanding his launch as his jail time period had already expired in 2016.
    Eventually, the Islamabad High Court had cleared Ismail’s repatriation after Indian authorities talked about his case throughout a listening to of Kulbhushan Jadhav case in December 2020. He was launched from Karachi Central Jail on January 21 and was handed over to Indian authorities at Wagah border the following day. A staff of Kutch (west) police introduced him again on Friday.
    “Ismail’s return is nothing less than the Eid or a wedding in the family,” Fazalla stated.

    Ataulla, Ismail’s eldest son, who was 20 and married when Ismail went lacking, needed to deal with the household in his father’s absence. They personal a couple of acres of land and Ataulla additionally works as an off-the-cuff labourer. Kamabai helps the household by stitching quilts which might be gifted to girls once they get married within the area. Four of his eight youngsters are married now.

    When requested about his subsequent plans, Ismail struggled to provide a solution.