Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari kicked off his three-day visit to Pakistani-occupied Kashmir (PoK) on Sunday, where he will also deliver a speech to people residing in the region, Dawn reported.
Bilawal’s visit to PoK comes as India prepares to host the third G20 Tourism Task Force Meeting in Jammu and Kashmir from Monday (May 22) amid heightened security measures.
Under the Indian presidency, the third meeting of the G20 Tourism Working Group is scheduled to take place in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, from May 22-24.
Time and again, Pakistan has shown strong discontent over New Delhi’s intention to convene the G20 Tourism Working Group conference in Kashmir.
Rejecting Pakistan’s criticism, India said G20 meetings are being organized across the country and therefore it is “natural” to hold meetings in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh as “these are inalienable parts of India”.
Pakistan recently criticized India’s decision to host a G20 meeting in Srinagar and parts of Kashmir as an “irresponsible move.”
“The G20 meetings are being organized all over India, in all cities and parts of India. Therefore, it is natural to hold the meetings in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh because they are inalienable parts of India,” the spokesperson said. official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MEA). said Arindam Bagchi during MEA’s weekly press conference.
“That is what I would like to say. Meetings are taking place in all parts of India, that is our natural response,” the official MEA spokesperson said.
India announced Srinagar as the venue for the G20 Tourism Working Group meeting scheduled for May 22-24.
India-Pakistan relations have been precarious for many years with regard to cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan. Furthermore, New Delhi has consistently raised the issue of Pakistan’s continued support for cross-border terrorism and terrorist infiltration. It has been said that the people of Jammu and Kashmir have borne the brunt of this terrorist campaign for decades and continue to do so.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari recently visited India for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Foreign Ministers meeting in Goa in May. At the meeting, he made comments about not getting “caught up in weaponizing terrorism to score diplomatic points.”
After that, he was criticized by Foreign Minister S Jaishankar who said it means “they think terrorism is legitimate” and that India is politically and diplomatically exposing Pakistan to the world as a victim of cross-border terrorism.
Jaishankar, who addressed a press conference after the SCO Foreign Ministers’ meeting, said India is defending itself against terrorism.
“Weaponization. It’s a very interesting statement because it subconsciously reveals a mindset. What does it mean to weaponize something? It means that the activity is legitimate and someone is weaponizing it. So you say you’re weaponizing the trade, you’re weaponizing the technology. Someone says you’re weaponizing terrorism, which means they think terrorism is legitimate and we shouldn’t weaponize it. That’s normal,” Jaishankar said.
However, Bilawal called Jaishankar’s comments about him as a perpetrator of terrorism a “joke,” Dawn reported. “This country knows me, have I ever accidentally sat down with a terrorist in my political history?” Dawn quoted Bilawal Bhutto Zardari as saying.
“They do not see that not even in our country we (PPP) play a leading role against the appeasement of terrorists,” he added.
From now on, the G20 working group meeting in Jammu and Kashmir will focus on five key priority areas: Green Tourism, Digitization, Skills, MSMEs and Destination Management.
The meeting aims to strengthen economic growth, preserve cultural heritage and promote sustainable development in the region.
The event will feature the participation of G20 member countries, invited countries, international organizations and industry stakeholders.
Harsh Vardhan Shringla, G20 Senior Convener, said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision is for the message of the G20 Presidency of India to be brought to the grassroots level through the asset Jan Bhagidari. Shringla appreciated the government’s efforts to sensitize people to the goals and purpose of the G20 through multiple public activities.
The tourism industry has played a crucial role in the development of the Union Territory. However, years of instability have affected the tourism industry, leading to a decline in visitor numbers.
By the way, China, which is a close ally of Pakistan, said on Friday that it will not attend next week’s G20 Tourism Working Group meeting in Jammu and Kashmir, saying it is “strongly” opposed to holding meetings of this guy in “disputed territory”. .”
“China strongly opposes holding any form of G20 meeting on disputed territory. We will not attend such meetings,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular press conference when asked. He asked about various reports circulating that China will boycott planned G20 meetings in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir.
India assumed the presidency of the G20 grouping on December 1, 2022 and will hold the position for one year.
The G20 summit in Jammu and Kashmir promises to launch a tidal wave of transformative results, setting the region on a new trajectory towards stability, economic growth and social development.
(Only the headline and image in this report may have been modified by Business Standard staff; all other content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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