Pakistan to lodge protest against US drones at UN

Pakistan will formally lodge its protest on US drone attacks in the UN General Assembly session next month, the country’s top official said Friday.

Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz in a policy statement in National Assembly said the US attacks violate Pakistan’s sovereignty and international laws.

“A breakthrough is expected on the issue of US drone strikes in the coming months,” he said, without elaborating.

The US routinely fires missiles into Waziristan tribal region to what it says target militants who are accused of crossing into Afghanistan for attacks on foreign and Afghan forces.

Aziz said that Pakistan leaders in their forthcoming meetings with US authorities, will ask them to stop drone strikes as they were counterproductive.

He also said that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had supported Pakistan’s stance on the issue.

He said Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was expected to hold a meeting with US President in New York next month.

Commenting on Pakistan’s relation with US, Aziz said that the US only insisted on cordial relations when they wanted something and returned to giving a cold response when the purpose was fulfilled.

“Our government has successfully made US Secretary of State John Kerry realise that Pak-US relations should not be seen through the Afghanistan lens,” he said.

The adviser said Pakistan and the United States have agreed to resume strategic dialogue early next year.

On Syria, Aziz said that Pakistan will maintain a stance of non-interference with respect to the ongoing situation in Syria.

“Pakistan condemns the use of chemical weapons, but it does not support aerial strikes which US proposes as it will only make the situation “more concerning.”

“We should wait for the UN mission’s report on Syria,” he added.

Aziz said that Pakistan’s stance on Syria is based on the principles of international law and UN Charter to respect the territorial integrity of Syria and to maintain a policy of non-military intervention and interference even under Right to Protect.

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Posted by Tahir Khan on Aug 30 2013. Filed under Latest News, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.