Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Maleeha Lodhi has delivered a dossier on India’s interference and terrorism in Pakistan to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres along with a letter from Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz.
According to details, the dossier contains additional information and proof of Indian intelligence agency, Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) interference in Pakistan and involvement in terrorism particularly in Balochistan, FATA and Karachi. Sartaj Aziz in the covering letter highlighted the arrest of RAW’s agent Kulbhushan Jadhav from Balochistan and his confessional statement admitting involvement in activities aimed at destabilizing Pakistan and support to terrorist elements. It was stressed that India was carrying out these activities in clear contravention of the UN Charter and the resolutions of the UN Security Council on counter-terrorism and international conventions on terrorism.
It was also good effort of Sartaj Aziz to highlight struggle of Pakistan to eliminate terrorism from the country, he added that Pakistan had made a major contribution to global counter-terrorism efforts and secured significant gains in its domestic fight against terrorism. This achievement had come at a great national cost including the lives lost of thousands of civilians and security forces personnel, but India’s actions threatened to undermine these gains.
Surprise visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi of Lahore in 2015 refreshed hopes for revival of bilateral talks, but Pathankot and Uri attack in 2016 resulted in the rise of tensions. Later, the arrest of Kulbhushan Yadav and Pakistan’s stance of highlighting globally the Indian atrocities in held Kashmir played a role in further straining the ties. After these developments, India is constantly opting for aggressive stance against Pakistan and also threatened of revoking the Indus Water Treaty (IWT).
Pakistan has time and again stressed that having friendly and peaceful relation with all neighbours including India is the core element of its foreign policy. But constant involvements of India in anti-Pakistan activities in Pakistan are posing a great threat to the regional peace. India should know that common objectives of economic development and prosperity for the region can best be promoted through regional cooperation, conflict resolution and peaceful settlement of disputes. Aggressive approach of India can lead to further severing bilateral ties; it should realize that poverty-stricken region needs positive approach to solve the issues and not the aggressive ones. India should realize that it should refrain from creating instability in Pakistan and should peacefully solve all the outstanding issues in order to achieve peace in the region.
Pakistan has the capacity to thwart anti-Pakistan activities and to defend its territorial integrity, but it is also necessary to use international forums to reveal heinous objectives of India to destabilize Pakistan. Despite submitting dossiers in the past, former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon hardly played any role in this regard. Incumbent UN Chief has offered to initiate process of peace between the estranged neighbours, but it is time to translate words into action.
UN should play role in the light of shared information to restrain India from anti-Pakistan activities.
