Tag: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi

  • Shah Mahmood’s son Zain Qureshi to be investigated for vote-buying practices

    Shah Mahmood’s son Zain Qureshi to be investigated for vote-buying practices

    District Monitoring Officer for PP-217, Haider Riaz, has issued orders for an inquiry against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) candidate Zain Qureshi, son of former foreign minister and PTI’s Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi, for indulging in vote-buying practices during the by-election campaign in UC-44.

    A complaint initiated through social media alleged that Zain Qureshi has offered a new motorcycle to each voter who can acquire 10 votes in his favour.

    The inquiry letter states that such practices are considered corrupt and Article 218 (3) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan allows the Election Commission to guard against corrupt practices. The inquiry is headed by Sadar assistant commissioner and DRTA secretary Multan.

  • PTI ministers meet PML-Q leadership to deliver PM Khan’s ‘important message’

    PTI ministers meet PML-Q leadership to deliver PM Khan’s ‘important message’

    Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Defense Minister Pervez Khattak had a meeting with Punjab Provincial Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi and his son Minister for Water Resources Moonis Elahi.

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) delegation met the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) to convey a message from Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan.

    A notification/statement of the meeting was issued. According to the statement, Member National Assembly (MNA) Tariq Bashir Cheema informed the federal ministers of the problems they have been facing for the last three and a half years while discussions were also held to resolve the issues.

    Pervaiz Elahi said that regarding the meeting, the party will take President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain into confidence and the next meeting will be held in Islamabad soon.

  • 80 per cent of people want us to leave government alliance due to rising inflation: Faisal Sabzwari

    80 per cent of people want us to leave government alliance due to rising inflation: Faisal Sabzwari

    Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) Senator Faisal Sabzwari while speaking on Geo News programme, ‘Jashn-e-Cricket’, said that 80 per cent of people want them to leave the government alliance.

    “Due to rising inflation in the country, 80 per cent of people want us to leave the government alliance,” said Sabzwari.

    Faisal Sabzwari advised the incumbent government not to panic, adding that his party has not received any signal yet to leave the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

    Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi while speaking on  Geo News programme, ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath’, said that the government is not worried about any motion and “we completely trust our allies and partners stand with the government”.

    “I’m sending a clear message to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) that their meetings to depose the prime minister are nothing more than table talk,” said Qureshi.

    It is worth noting that the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday met MQM-P delgation.

    Addressing a press conference along with MQM-P Deputy Convenor Amir Khan and other party members, Shehbaz said, “Today’s ally can become tomorrow’s rival.”

    Meanwhile, Amir Khan said, “The kind of problems people are facing because of the federal government in the provincial capital, we are facing the similar kind of torture and oppression in Sindh because of them.”

  • VIDEO: ‘Gilani is a bika hua siyasatdaan,’ Shah Mahmood Qureshi warns Senate

    VIDEO: ‘Gilani is a bika hua siyasatdaan,’ Shah Mahmood Qureshi warns Senate

    Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi while addressing the Senate lashed out at Leader of the Opposition Yusuf Raza Gilani.

    “I said it yesterday and I am saying it today, he [Gilani] said that I don’t want to be Leader of the Opposition, he was lying. He will stay, he will take back his resignation. He will stick to this chair. This was all a drama,” said Qureshi.

    Qureshi said, “I am warning you, honourable members of the Senate, listen and pay attention to what I am saying. Members of the Senate, the Leader of the Opposition is a compromised leader. Don’t rely on him.”

    “Don’t you see a seasoned and respected parliamentarian like Raza Rabbani? Don’t you see a respected politician like Sherry Rehman sitting in your rows? He [Gilani] is compromised and a sellout,” said Qureshi.

    On Monday, Gilani announced that he had submitted his resignation as Leader of the Opposition to his party. “In the end, I will say that I have already submitted my resignation to my party that I don’t want to be the Leader of the Opposition.”

  • Shah Mehmood refuses to directly answer question about Biden not calling Khan, says it’s irrelevant

    Shah Mehmood refuses to directly answer question about Biden not calling Khan, says it’s irrelevant

    Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mahmood Qureshi, while speaking on Samaa News programme, revealed that talks of Pakistan with the President of United States (US) Joe Biden are now irrelevant.

    Speaking on ‘Nadeem Malik Live’, Qureshi said, “These talks with America have no weight, they are irrelevant.”

    Nadeem interjected and said that Pakistan does not want to talk to America, to which Qureshi said, “We will talk to them, whenever required we will talk to them [America]. When they need to talk to us, they do so.”

    “When we require we engage with them. When I was in New York I met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, we had a great meeting,” said Qureshi.

    Nadeem questioned Qureshi if the relationship between America and Pakistan had scaled down? Qureshi negating the question said, “No, the relationship has scaled up now.”

    “Why can’t you talk to Biden?” questioned Nadeem. “Biden as a personality has many institutions and has many channels of communication. Those channels of communications are open to us and we use them,” responded Qureshi.

    Later when Nadeem reminded him that there was a time when foreign office used to actively work to get a call for the sidelines of the United Nations (UN) assembly, now Qureshi was stating that the Biden call is irrelevant.

    Negating his previous statement, Qureshi said, “There is no harm in meeting Biden. But if he [Biden] thinks that he is busy with things and he might have is own preferences, so we have no hurry as well.”

    “Why has Biden kept us away from him as a policy, and has disengaged with us,” questioned Nadeem?

    “[Biden] can give the answer to this,” said Qureshi.

  • Pakistan offers to host OIC summit to discuss Afghan crisis

    Pakistan offers to host OIC summit to discuss Afghan crisis

    Foreign Minister (FM) of Pakistan Shah Mahmood Qureshi has announced that Pakistan fully endorses Saudi Arabia’s move to request an extraordinary session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to discuss the current Afghanistan situation after the Taliban takeover.

    Qureshi said, “Afghanistan is a founding member of the OIC. As part of the Islamic Ummah, we are bound by fraternal bonds of amity and brotherhood with the people of Afghanistan,” he said stressing that, “today, our Afghan brothers and sisters need us more than ever before.”

    In a video message, shared by the Foreign Office (FO), the minister also announced that Pakistan has offered to host the meeting in Islamabad on December 17.

    Saudi Arabia also made the call for the session on the same day, as per the state-run Saudi Press Agency.

    According to the minister, the arrival of winter has worsened the humanitarian crisis in the worn-torn country. ​He emphasised the need for the OIC to “step in to help our Afghan brothers.”

    According to Qureshi, the first extraordinary session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers was held in Islamabad in January 1980, also on the situation in Afghanistan at that time.

    “Next month, we would, once again, gather in Islamabad, to reaffirm our abiding solidarity with and support to the Afghan people,” Qureshi concluded.

    Since the Taliban takeover, the country has been facing obstacles in the face of violations of human rights and economic collapse.

  • Pakistan summons Indian embassy official over targeting of Muslims

    Pakistan summons Indian embassy official over targeting of Muslims

    The Foreign Office (FO) summoned the Indian Charge d’ Affaires on Friday and conveyed the government’s concern over the recent target killing of Muslims in the Indian state of Assam.

    In the incident, two people were reported dead. It took place in the Sipajhar area of Assam’s Darrang district, where most of the residents are Muslims, reports Dawn.

    In the video, several cops can be seen beating a man with sticks even as he lay motionless on the ground. It went viral on Twitter after which Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi came under fire.

    Earlier, Pakistan’s federal minister Fawad Chaudhry condemned the incident, and said, “Today, Prime Minister Imran Khan will once again draw the attention of the United Nations to the atrocities taking place in India. #ModiFascism.”

  • ‘Kabul should avoid pointing fingers at Pakistan for its own failures’: Shah Mahmood Qureshi

    ‘Kabul should avoid pointing fingers at Pakistan for its own failures’: Shah Mahmood Qureshi

    Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mahmood Qureshi asked the Afghan government to avoid pointing fingers at Pakistan for its own failures and look into its governance issues.

    In a press briefing at the Foreign Office (FO), he said Pakistan had repeatedly said it had no favourites in Afghanistan and saw all sides of the conflict as Afghans.

    “It is unfortunate to scapegoat Pakistan for the failures of others; the issues of governance and meltdown of Afghan National Defence Forces need to be looked into — and not just start pointing fingers at Pakistan.”

    “The time has come when the world wants answers to what has been achieved in Afghanistan in these past 20 years. The taxpayer in the United States (US), the United Kingdom (UK), and Europe wants to know who is responsible for no achievement. Pakistan will not be apologetic, as we are not accountable nor responsible for the trillions spent and nothing to show for it. No capacity building, no arms, where has everything gone?” remarked Qureshi.

    “Pakistan is against a forceful takeover of Afghanistan. Pakistan does not want a military takeover, as we do not support one. We speak of a political takeover. A military takeover will result in more bloodshed and the people of Afghanistan have suffered and this suffering should end. Leadership inside Afghanistan should rise to the occasion and avoid a military takeover. We urge all sides to show respect for human rights and international humanitarian laws,” said Qureshi.

    “We had made a request to be present there, but unfortunately, it was not accepted,” he said, adding that at the time of India assuming the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) presidency, Pakistan had asked it to operate objectively.

    However, India did not behave in a manner that was befitting of that responsibility, the foreign minister said. “India has been, in our view, in breach of its obligation as president of the Security Council.”

    Pakistan has been facilitating the peace process, and its role has been and will continue to be of a facilitator, the foreign minister said.

    “We cannot guarantee, we can only facilitate,” he said, noting it was up to the Afghans to decide their future, and now the world community was backing Pakistan’s narrative that there is no military solution in Afghanistan.

    While on the request of President Ashraf Ghani, intra-Afghan peace talks were postponed in Islamabad, Pakistan now looks forward to the August 11 peace talks of the troika consisting of Pakistan, China, and Russia with an aim of chartering a political way out for an Afghan-led peace process.

    “We reiterate the need for the effective use of available peace mechanisms,” Qureshi said, adding Pakistan has always stressed the need for talks.

  • 300 CCTV camera data collected, abduction not confirmed: IG Islamabad

    300 CCTV camera data collected, abduction not confirmed: IG Islamabad

    Inspector-General (IG) Islamabad Qazi Jameel-ur-Rehman, during a press conference on Monday in Islamabad, said that the police have formed five teams to probe the “abduction” of the Afghan ambassador’s daughter.

    “We traced the entire route on which the daughter of the Afghan ambassador travelled and also traced both the taxi drivers who drove her,” he said. “Before going to the city’s F-9 Park, the ambassador’s daughter first went to the F-6 area,” added IG Islamabad.

    He said the purported abduction of the Afghan envoy’s daughter was a complete “blind case” and they collected data of around 300 CCTV cameras installed in Islamabad and Rawalpindi.

    As per police investigation, her abduction has not been proven yet, he maintained.

    Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, said, “Pakistan wants to arrest and punish the culprits involved in alleged kidnapping as soon as possible.”

    The foreign minister further added, “I told the Afghan ambassador that we are aware of the security concerns he is having, therefore, we have beefed up all Afghan diplomats’ security.”

    National Security Adviser Dr Moeed Yusuf said on Monday that Pakistan was currently a target of “hybrid warfare” and an entire network of information warfare was being used against the country.

    He said fake accounts and bots were being used to create a “narrative” against Pakistan, including regarding the incident involving the Afghan envoy’s daughter.

    Sharing slides on data gathered by the government, Yusuf said hashtags were being trended on a daily basis to create false impressions including that Pakistan “is doing something [wrong] in Afghanistan” and that the security situation in Pakistan was poor.

    “This is part of an orchestrated campaign of which various fronts have been opened against Pakistan,” he said, adding that the same accounts that did “fake propaganda” regarding Balochistan or Kashmir were also doing propaganda ever since the alleged abduction incident took place. According to Yusuf, some of these accounts were operated from inside Pakistan, while the rest were controlled from Afghanistan, India, and the West.

    FM Qureshi said that he spoke to his Afghan counterpart this morning and discussed the steps that the Government of Pakistan has so far taken to investigate the matter. 

    “We have assured the Afghan government that Prime Minister Imran Khan is personally overseeing the probe into the alleged abduction of the Afghan ambassador’s daughter,” he said. 

    Qureshi reiterated that the Afghanistan government should reconsider its decision to pull out its ambassador and diplomats from Pakistan, adding that if they want the investigation to be transparent, it will have to cooperate with Pakistan. 

    “We don’t have any intention to hide anything… we need their [Afghanistan’s] cooperation to take the investigation to its logical conclusion,” he added.

    Earlier today, Foreign Minister Qureshi informed his Afghan counterpart Mohammad Haneef Atmar that the security of the Afghan embassy and consulate in Pakistan had been further enhanced.

    The development comes a day after the Afghanistan government decided to withdraw its ambassador and senior diplomats from Pakistan, a move that Islamabad termed as “unfortunate and regrettable”.

  • PM Khan assures Chinese counterpart about thorough investigation in Dasu incident

    PM Khan assures Chinese counterpart about thorough investigation in Dasu incident

    Prime Minister Imran Khan has assured Chinese Premier Li Keqiang of making every effort into the Dasu bus incident, in which 12 people were killed, including nine Chinese nationals, reports Geo News.

    In a telephonic conversation, PM Khan offered his condolences over the death of the Chinese nationals.

    “All efforts will be made to investigate the incident,” PM said.

    He further added that the security and protection of Chinese citizens in Pakistan is the government’s top priority.

    Beijing, meanwhile, reacted sharply to the incident by postponing a meeting of the Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) scheduled for Friday. The meeting was to be held through a video link, reported Dawn.

    CPEC Authority Chairman Lt Gen (retd) Asim Bajwa announced the postponement of the meeting on Twitter. “JCC-10 meeting on #CPEC which was scheduled to be held on 16th July 21, has been postponed to a later date after Eid. The fresh date will be shared as finalized. Meanwhile, preparations continue,” he said.

    On Thursday, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry took to Twitter and said, “Initial investigations into Dassu incident have now confirmed traces of explosives, terrorism cannot be ruled out,” contradicting the statement by his party’s Foreign Minister.

    “Prime Minister Imran Khan is personally supervising all developments, in this regard Govt is in close coordination with the Chinese embassy we are committed to fighting the menace of terrorism together,” tweeted Fawad.

    Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, on behalf of the government and the people of Pakistan, had expressed sincere condolences to the Chinese side over the heavy Chinese casualties. He said that the preliminary investigation shows that the incident was “an accident and no background of terrorist attacks has been found”.