According to him, Kashmir and Pakistan are connected by geography, religion, history, and culture, and Pakistan will continue to provide the Kashmiri people with unwavering political, diplomatic, and moral support in their fight for freedom.
Bhutto-Zardari cited the UN Security Council resolution stating that the people of Jammu and Kashmir must be permitted to exercise their right to self-determination through a plebiscite that is sponsored by the UN.
He claimed that instead of following through on its promise to implement the decision, India had resorted to fraud and force. He emphasised that a lasting peace between Pakistan and India is impossible without resolving the Kashmir conflict.
The Foreign Minister proposed the creation of a special task force of experts at the OIC forum to develop a strategy to ensure equal treatment in the rules and structure of international finance, trade, and taxation.
He also urged the OIC to demand speedy debt restructuring for 60 financially vulnerable countries, the redistribution of unutilized SDRs (Special Drawing Rights) to developing countries, large lending by multilateral development banks, massive public-private partnership investments, sustainable infrastructure, and the mobilization of the promised climate financing of $100 billion.
The OIC member states must keep denouncing Israel’s repeated aggression against the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the occupied Palestinian territory, according to Bhutto-Zardari, who also addressed the Palestine issue. He demanded the establishment of a Palestinian state with Al-Quds as its capital within the boundaries of 1967.
Bhutto-Zardari claimed that Pakistan had taken all reasonable steps to stop a serious humanitarian crisis and economic collapse in Afghanistan. He urged the OIC to assist in establishing a clear path to peace in Afghanistan, to support the Afghan interim government in upholding earlier commitments, to respect human rights to the fullest extent possible, to advance political inclusivity, and to help end the threat posed by Daesh, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and other terrorist organisations.
The minister emphasised the need to resolve conflicts and disagreements within the Islamic community, arguing that these issues undermine unity and solidarity, support terrorism and extremism, and divert attention from development.
After dealing with the negative effects of COVID-19, inflation, the economic collapse in Afghanistan, and the repercussions of the Ukraine war, Bhutto-Zardari expressed gratitude to the brotherly Islamic countries for their generous support for Pakistan in its hour of need, particularly during the devastating floods last summer.
He enthusiastically praised the diplomatic rapprochement reached by Saudi Arabia and Iran as well as the constructive role played by the Chinese leadership. He emphasised the importance of working together to bring peace to Yemen, Syria, Iraq, and Libya and urged the OIC to strengthen its security apparatus to support dialogue-based solutions.
Additionally, the Foreign Minister addressed Islamophobia and said he had urged the UN Secretary-General to create an action plan to combat it. And finally, he declared that Pakistan would be excited to host the OIC ministerial conference on women’s empowerment later this year as well as the 18th OIC trade fair in June of this year.
