- Abbasi, Erdogan agree on revival of Pak-Afghanistan-Turkey trilateral process for peace, stability in Afghanistan
Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Tuesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly Session in New York.
The two leaders had an in-depth exchange of views about the strengthening of bilateral relations. They also reviewed regional peace and security situation. The prime minister said that Pakistan-Turkey relations are based on common faith, values, culture, history, mutual trust and support. Linkages between the people of the two countries had transformed into a strategic partnership that is strengthening with each passing day, he said.
Appreciating the regular high-level exchanges between the two countries and the institutional interaction through the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council, both the leaders expressed satisfaction over deepening of cooperation through political, defence, trade and investment exchanges. The two leaders emphasised that the two countries should continue to attach special focus on enhancing economic cooperation and work together for early finalisation of the Free Trade Agreement for boosting the bilateral trade.
PM Abbasi said that Pakistan and Turkey extended support to each other on the issues of their vital national interests. He thanked the Turkish president for Turkey’s unflinching support to the struggle of the people of India-occupied Jammu Kashmir. President Erdogan appreciated the strengthening of the bilateral relations through concrete cooperation in various fields and the commonality of views between the two countries on key international and regional issues.
He reaffirmed Turkey’s commitment for continued endeavours for the strengthening of the mutually beneficial strategic partnership. The two leaders also exchanged views on the regional situation. On the efforts for peace and stability in Afghanistan, they agreed that there was no military solution to the Afghan conflict, and the efforts should continue for a regional approach for an internal political settlement in Afghanistan through an Afghan-owned Afghan-led peace process.
Both the leaders agreed on the revival of the Pakistan-Afghanistan-Turkey trilateral process for promoting lasting peace and stability in Afghanistan. Discussing the plight of Rohingya Muslims, Erdogan and PM Abbasi urged the international community and the OIC to take urgent measures to alleviate their suffering.
PM met Sri Lankan president in New York
Prime Minister Abbasi extended an invitation to Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena to visit Pakistan during a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. The meeting began by reiterating the deep and historic relations between the two countries. It was decided to further strengthen the bonds of friendship between Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
It was also agreed that both the countries would continue to cooperate at all multilateral forums in the spirit of neighbourhood and longstanding relationships which were rooted in history. President Sirisena thanked Prime Minister Abbasi for Pakistan’s consistent support to Sri Lanka during challenging times when Sri Lanka was facing wave of terror, and during natural disasters. He stressed on the need for enhancement in trade and economic relations between the two countries. It was agreed that there is a large potential for expansion in defence cooperation.
Prime Minister Abbasi said that Pakistan considers Sri Lanka a very important country and attaches great importance to its bilateral relations with Sri Lanka. “We believe that Sri Lanka, being an important member of SAARC, can play a significant role in the regional organisation,” he said. “We want to further expand trade and economic cooperation with Sri Lanka, he expressed.
