BTC on Top
Several [council] members recognised the imperative of peacefully resolving all issues, including the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, in accordance with UNSC resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people,” Iftikhar said.
“There was also a clear sense that regional stability cannot be sustained through unilateralism, it requires principled diplomacy, engagement and adherence to international law.”
Iftikhar noted that peace “does not happen in a vacuum” and highlighted some of the key points discussed during the moot.
“We expressed grave concern over India’s recent unilateral measures, particularly the illegal actions of April 23, military buildup and inflammatory statements,” he said.
“These actions, alongside credible evidence of potential escalation, have dangerously raised tensions.
“Pakistan does not seek confrontation [but] we are fully prepared to defend our sovereignty and territorial integrity in accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter. When peace is threatened in a region home to one-fourth of humanity, it becomes a global issue,” he noted.
Iftikhar highlighted that Pakistan “categorically rejected” India’s allegations that it was responsible for the Pahalgam attack, which was condemned by Pakistan and “all council members”.
“What India is claiming is nothing but recycled allegations, unsubstantiated, unverified [and] designed to serve its political interest and strategic objectives, which include trying to divert attention from repression and human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir and to undermine the legitimate Kashmiri struggle for self-determination,” he said.
Iftikhar also raised India’s unilateral suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, which he noted was brokered by the World Bank and “upheld during wars”.
“Water is life, not a weapon,” he said. “These rivers sustain over 240 million Pakistanis. Any attempt to disrupt their flow constitutes aggression, and allowing such a precedent would endanger every lower riparian state.”
