Coronavirus: Pakistan urges India to end communication blackout in IoK

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has once again urged the Indian government to end the communication blackout in IoK with regard to threat posed by coronavirus.

This was stated by Foreign Office Spokesperson Aisha Farooqui while addressing a weekly news briefing in Islamabad.

She said communication blackout is depriving the people of the region of critical information and supplies of critical medical items needed to effectively contain COVID-19 pandemic. Miss Farooqui demanded that the medical teams and supplies be allowed to reach the people of occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

The spokesperson said that Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi during his interaction with the SAARC counterparts in recent days reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to the SAARC process. She said Pakistan has proposed a video conference of SAARC health ministers at an early date to coordinate efforts to stem the coronavirus in the region.

The spokesperson said it is utmost endeavor of the government and our missions abroad to ensure the safety and early return of our nationals stranded in different parts of the world. She said our missions are actively in contact with the local authorities and helping the Pakistani nationals with food, medicines and accommodation.

She pointed out that the government in recent days operated special flights to repatriate the stranded Pakistanis from Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Doha.