Islamabad: In his special address to the nation on Monday, Prime Minister Imran Khan reaffirmed Pakistan’s resolve to stand by the people of Jammu and Kashmir and vowed to defend their cause at every international forum.
Imran called himself the Ambassador of Kashmir and maintained that Pakistani people and the government will stand united with Kashmiris until their right to freedom is restored.
He called on the United Nations to fulfil its obligation towards Kashmiri people by holding the plebiscite promised decades ago. He also urged world superpowers to realise the gravity of the situation, as not only Muslims but all those who believe in humanity are looking towards them.
The premier started the address by saying that ever since he came to power his government wanted peaceful relations with all countries including India and Afghanistan.
“I made many offers for dialogue [to India] but there were always some problems,” he said.
He also added that his priority was to address issues faced by both Pakistan and India such as inflation, poverty, unemployment and climate change. However, he regretted that the India government did not respond to the gestures.
He said that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made a “historic blunder” by revoking Kashmir’s special autonomy and in doing so “he has opened the way to Kashmir’s freedom”.
Explaining the efforts of Pakistan on Kashmir, Imran said that the government has made every effort to internationalise the issue.
“We won on the diplomatic front... we internationalised the Kashmir issue, talked to heads of states, their embassies and human rights organisations. The UN Security Council called a session on Kashmir for the first time since 1965,” he added.
He noted that the international media also picked up the issue and reported on it.
Elaborating on the Pakistan government’s future strategy on Kashmir, he vowed to personally take up the issue at every international forum particularly during the United Nations General Assembly 74th summit session in New York.
He urged Pakistanis to demonstrate their solidarity with Kashmiri people by joining weekly ceremonies at schools and offices initiated by the government starting this Friday.
