PM Imran successfully raised Kashmir issue before world: FM Qureshi

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Sunday said that Prime Minister Imran Khan successfully internationalized the issue of Kashmir, which had been lying dormant for five decades.

Talking to Radio Pakistan, FM Qureshi said, “India has been badly exposed viz-a-viz its human rights violations and atrocities in the Occupied Kashmir as the Indian media has started criticizing this as well.”

He said post prime minister’s speech, there have been 23 incidents, where people defied the curfew and come out to protest. The foreign minister said there were fireworks, the night PM Imran Khan addressed the UN General Assembly.

He said, “Today in Manchester, a large number of Pakistani and British citizens are protesting the human rights violations and the lockdown in Occupied Kashmir.”

Responding to a question, FM Qureshi said the Pakistani team had excellent bilateral interactions with global leaders, think tanks, the media, civil society, and diaspora, where it put across the point of view of Kashmiris.

He said Prime Minister Imran Khan had 70 interactions with world leaders during his stay in New York. Qureshi further said, “Many countries stood by Pakistan’s stance on the crisis in Kashmir and also mentioned the illegal occupation of Jammu and Kashmir in their statements for which we are thankful to them.”

He especially thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad, and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The foreign minister also thanked UN Secretary General António Guterres, who acknowledged situation in Kashmir as an issue, which needs immediate attention.