- FO spokesperson says New Delhi has been repeatedly informed about RAW’s activities in Pakistan and it’s time the neighbouring country refrains from interfering in Pakistan’s internal matters
- Says India has admitted in its parliament that it does not know about crime lord Dawood Ibrahim’s whereabouts
- Pakistan supports Afghan-led efforts to bring peace to Afghanistan
A day after the military’s top brass accused Indian intelligence agency RAW of supporting terrorism in Pakistan, the Foreign Office has echoed similar concerns asking India to refrain from interfering in its internal matters.
“Pakistan has provided proof of Indian involvement in Pakistani affairs at many occasions, including the recent secretary level talks,” Khalilullah Qazi, the new spokesperson of the Foreign Office, said during his maiden press briefing on Thursday.
“We have availed all possible opportunities to remind India to avoid interfering in the internal affairs of Pakistan,” he added.
In a statement following a conference of the corps commanders presided over by army chief General Raheel Sharif at the military headquarters in Rawalpindi, the ISPR said, “The conference took serious notice of RAW’s involvement in whipping up terrorism in Pakistan.”
Responding to a question on underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, the newly-appointed FO spokesperson said, “Pakistan has repeatedly said Dawood Ibrahim is not on its soil and at last India admitted the Pakistani stance saying that it does not know his whereabouts.”
Contradicting its own firmly-held position, the Indian government had told Indian parliament on Tuesday that Ibrahim, one of India’s most-wanted men for masterminding the 1993 blasts in Mumbai in which 300 people were killed, has not been located so far.
“The United Nations Security Council has also issued a special notice against him. The subject has not been located so far. Extradition process with regard to Dawood Ibrahim would be initiated once the subject is located,” Indian Minister of State for Home Haribhai Chaudhury said in reply to a written question.
Regarding Doha’s process for reconciliation in Afghanistan, the Pakistani FO spokesperson said, “Pakistan has always been supportive of Afghan-led process for bringing peace and stability in that country.”
Qazi added, “Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has a vision for peace and stability in the region and the government is making all out efforts under this vision to achieve this objective.”
“The visit of senior PPP officials to Kabul is a good omen and the government encourages political contacts between the two countries, as they would be beneficial for the promotion of bilateral relations,” he added.
Speaking about the ongoing elections in the United Kingdom, Khalilullah said Pakistan’s ties with the UK were not reliant on any single political party being in power. He said the two countries enjoy close relations, and that the Pakistani government was looking to cement ties with the new British government.