National Security Committee vows to impress upon US to reverse Jerusalem decision

ISLAMABAD: National Security Committee on Monday vowed to impress upon the United States for the need to revoke the decisions taken regarding Jerusalem.

“Pakistan cannot accept the unilateral decisions taken by the Trump Administration, and it would continue to impress upon the United States its moral and political responsibility towards a just and fair resolution of the issue, and the need to revoke the steps take,” said the committee in its 16th meeting in Islamabad.

Earlier this month, Trump abruptly reversed decades of US policy by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, generating outrage from Palestinians, Muslims and other people from around the world. Trump also plans to move the US embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv.

Read More: India’s muted response to Trump’s Jerusalem move stokes Arab unease

Observing that these two decisions had created an incomprehensible situation not just for the Muslim Ummah but also for the international community in general, National Security Committee emphasized that the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state remained a major objective of the Muslim Ummah.

The foreign secretary on this occasion briefed the meeting on the Organistion of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Extraordinary Summit and Council of Foreign Ministers Meeting on al-Quds held in Istanbul on December 13.

The meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in Islamabad. Interior Minister Prof Ahsan Iqbal, National Security Advisor Lt. General (Retd.) Nasser Khan Janjua , Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Zubair Mehmood Hayat, Chief of the Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshall Sohail Aman and senior civil and military officials were also present on this occasion.

National Security Committee also condemned the terrorist attack on the Bethel Memorial Methodist Church in Quetta on Sunday, terming it to be against the fundamental tenets of peace and tolerance taught by Islam.

The committee also reviewed the rapidly evolving security situation in the Middle East as well as the latest developments in Pakistan’s relations with the GCC States and Iran. After thorough analysis, the meeting reaffirmed that Pakistan would continue to work for the unity and solidarity of the Muslim Ummah, for which it shall intensify its efforts in view of the growing challenges.

Read More: ‘Islamic Military Alliance should have liberation of al-Quds on top of agenda’

The secretary interior apprised the Committee of the progress made in each of the 20 areas of the National Action Plan (NAP). The committee observed that while fair progress had been made in the implementation of the NAP, certain areas, such as policy and institutional reform, needed more commitment and attention.

The committee also observed that as a responsible member of the International community, Pakistan would continue to fulfill its obligations under the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) framework, which would be shared in due course with the FATF.

Finally, the National Security Committee tasked the National Security Advisor to finalise the National Security Policy at the earliest after taking all stakeholders on board.