PM urges UN chief to ensure Kashmiris right to self-determination

* Calls for immediate end to Israel’s offensive in Gaza, Lebanon
* Pakistan, Turkiye agree to strengthen economic, security cooperation; premier also meets Bangladesh, Kuwait leaders
* Shehbaz urges developed world to help developing nations address debt traps

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday called on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to implement the relevant UN Security Council resolutions on Indian-held Kashmir and ensure Kashmiris’ right to self-determination during a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York,

Briefing the Secretary-General on the situation in Indian-held Kashmir, the premier underscored Pakistan’s serious concerns over India’s actions in the valley and stressed the need to resolve the dispute to ensure lasting peace and stability in South Asia, Radio Pakistan reported.

“We discussed the need for urgent action to resolve the Jammu & Kashmir Dispute; called for [an] immediate end to Israel’s ongoing offensive in Gaza and Lebanon; and highlighted the need to combat Islamophobia,” the prime minister wrote on X.

According to Radio Pakistan, UN Secretary-General Guterres thanked the PM for Pakistan’s active engagement at the United Nations, as well as for its role towards international peace and security through its UN peacekeeping force.

Separately, PM Shehbaz and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed to further strengthen “mutually beneficial cooperation” between their countries in various areas, including trade and security, the Foreign Office said.

In a press release, the FO said PM Shehbaz and Erdogan met each other in New York on the sidelines of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly. “Both leaders discussed the bilateral matters and agreed to further strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation in trade, investment, defence and security domains,” the statement said.

“They assessed preparations for the upcoming 7th session of the Pakistan-Turkiye High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) to be held in Islamabad soon,” it added.

According to the FO, the two leaders also called for an “immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an end of hostilities” as they discussed “regional and global developments, especially the ongoing genocide and the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza”.

The prime minister appreciated Turkiye’s “firm and consistent support for the oppressed people” of India-occupied Kashmir.

During the meeting, the FO said, President Erdogan “expressed his admiration for Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s economic policies, which have played a crucial role in stabilising Pakistan’s economy and commended the prime minister for his leadership and commitment to economic reform”.

Separately, on the sidelines of the UNGA, PTV News reported PM Shehbaz also met with Bangladesh leader Muhammad Yunus, who is heading an interim administration after former premier Sheikh Hasina’s ouster.

The prime minister also held a meeting with the Crown Prince of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, on the sidelines of the annual UN event, PTV News said on X.

They discussed cooperation in various fields, including political, economic and defence sectors, the post said.

PM Shehbaz expressed his determination to increase economic ties and investment between Kuwait and Pakistan under the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), it added.

Earlier, the PM urged developed nations to assist developing countries in overcoming debt traps, which he attributed largely to climate change-related natural disasters. Speaking at the SDG Moment 2024 Meeting on the sidelines of the 79th United Nations General Assembly in New York, the PM emphasized that the 2022 floods in Pakistan, which resulted from climate change, caused unprecedented damage even though the country contributes only a fraction of global carbon emissions.

“In 2022, we had the worst flooding in our history due to climate change and that was not our fault. We do not contribute even a fraction of a percent in terms of carbon emissions,” he stressed, adding that wealthy, industrialized nations, responsible for the majority of emissions, must take responsibility and support developing nations.

“”This is very important, otherwise this unbalanced, and unjust unfair system will lead to nowhere,” he warned.

The prime minister highlighted the immense financial challenges developing countries face in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), noting that the funding gap runs into trillions of dollars. Sharif also touched on Pakistan’s struggle against terrorism, particularly in the aftermath of 9/11, when the country faced severe cross-border terrorism, costing the lives of 80,000 Pakistanis. “Finally we have been able to beat them (terrorists), but we lost $150 billion in the process,” he added.