Bilawal in India
Bilawal warns of unforgettable response against G20 event in Srinagar
Shifts onus on India to build conducive environment for talks
NEW DELHI: Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Friday that the onus was on India to build a “conducive environment for talks”, as he contended that dialogue between the two countries was hurt by New Delhi’s decision to end occupied Kashmir’s special status.
He passed these remarks on the second day of his visit to Goa, where he attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) meeting.
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Bilawal said that the PPP had always advocated normalisation of relations with India but the latter’s “unilateral and illegal” actions pertaining to held Kashmir on August 5, 2019, had violated international law, United Nations resolutions and bilateral agreements.
Hence, he stated, it was Pakistan’s “principled position” that the status quo of August 4, 2019, was withdrawn as India’s actions had “really undermined the environment and now the onus is on India that they create the conducive environment in which talks can be held”.
Bilawal said there was a “trust deficit” ever since India violated previous agreements, asserting that there could be no change in the policy on diplomatic relations with India till the latter reverted to Kashmir’s position on August 4, 2019.
In response to a question on India’s decision to host G20 meetings in occupied Kashmir, he said: “Obviously we condemn it and at the time we will give such a response that it will be remembered.”
He said holding the meetings in the disputed territory showed India’s “pettiness” and was “a show of arrogance to the world that to hell with international law, UNSC resolutions and bilateral agreements, India will hold its events in Kashmir”.
FM Bilawal added that India would soon find that “they will be unable to achieve 110 per cent attendance because other people will not compromise on their morals”.
Talking about the ongoing tensions between the two countries in the realm of sports, particularly India’s refusal to visit Pakistan for Asia Cup 2023 and its demand for a neutral venue, Bilawal said: “I believe we shouldn’t hold sports hostage to politics or foreign policy and the purpose of sports is that you keep it away from such issues.”
He said it would be “very petty” of India if it kept sports hostage to politics. “The hope is that a petty action won’t be taken and we should keep our sportsmen and crickets separate from politics and foreign policy,” he added.
Responding to a question on the World Cup 2023 and if Pakistan would send its players for the tournament, the foreign minister said: “I hope that we’re in a position to not have sports suffer as a result [of our bilateral issues].”
At the same time, the foreign minister also said that the two countries could not be held hostage by history.
Earlier in the day, the foreign minister also emphasised the importance of greater cooperation among SCO countries in tackling terrorism, calling for joint efforts to address the root causes of the issue.
“The collective security of our peoples is our joint responsibility. […] Let’s not get caught up in weaponising terrorism for diplomatic point scoring,” the Foreign Office (FO) quoted Bilawal as saying.
Citing Pakistan’s proposal to establish the Special Working Group on Poverty Alleviation, Bilawal advocated for closer cooperation for poverty alleviation under the SCO, the FO said. Monitoring Desk
