FM Qureshi discusses bilateral ties with British, Omani counterparts

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi met his British counterpart Jeremy Hunt on the sidelines of annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

The foreign minister expressed satisfaction on current status of bilateral ties and hoped to further enhance cooperation in diverse areas such as trade, investment, development cooperation, and education.

Mr Hunt congratulated Qureshi on his appointment and conveyed his government’s desire to exchange cooperation with Pakistan in all areas of mutual interest.

Qureshi also briefed his counterpart on relations with Afghanistan and situation of grave human rights violations by Indian security forces in Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

He said peace and stability in Afghanistan was a shared responsibility and Pakistan would continue to support the structured bilateral engagement plan through five working groups of Afghanistan Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) to address all matters of mutual interest.

The two foreign ministers stressed the need to continue working together and translate the existing historical relation into a multi-faceted strategic partnership. Hunt also invited Qureshi to visit UK.

Pakistan and United Kingdom have an institutional framework of cooperation in the form of Enhanced Strategic Dialogue (ESD) which will meet in Islamabad later this year. 

Pakistan, Oman have a robust relationship

In a separate meeting, Qureshi also met with Omani Foreign Minister Yousuf Bin Alawi bin Abdullah in New York. The foreign minister highlighted the great significance attached by Pakistan to its relations with Oman.

He expressed satisfaction at regular interactions between the two parliaments and other frameworks, which form the basis of a robust relationship between the two countries. Both sides agreed to early holding of the next round of Joint Ministerial Commission.

Mr Qureshi referred to the 272,000 strong Pakistani community, which serves as the strongest bridge between the two nations. He offered services of skilled and semi-skilled manpower to meet Oman’s future manpower needs.

Both sides emphasised the need to enhance the existing volume of bilateral trade which is much below the actual potential of the two countries.

It was agreed to increase frequent business interactions and people to people contacts and joint ventures in areas of large-scale manufacturing.