FM Qureshi boycotts Indian minister speech at SAARC meeting
FM Qureshi said Pakistan will not engage with India until and unless they lift the siege in IOJ&K
NEW YORK (Dunya News) - Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi boycotted Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar s opening statement at the meeting of the SAARC Council of Foreign Ministers held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session in New York on Thursday.
Shah Mehmood Qureshi in a statement said Pakistan will not engage with India "until and unless" it lifts the "siege" in Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJ&K)
"Pakistan will not engage with the Butcher of Kashmir until and unless they lift the siege and put an end to atrocities in Occupied Kashmir. They must safeguard human rights of Kashmiris, ensure they are protected and not violated or trampled upon," Qureshi said.
FM Qureshi said the member countries of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) had unanimously agreed to hold the next summit level meeting in Pakistan.
He said all the member states, except India, agreed to hold the next summit level meeting in Pakistan. As India was left isolated it had no option but to endorse the proposal later, he added.
The foreign minister said the last SAARC summit was scheduled to be held in Islamabad in 2016, which could not be held due to Indian objections. However, India this time remained silent in that regard, he added.
