Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi says he will not participate in OIC's Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Abu Dhabi.
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Friday announced Pakistan will not attend a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) being hosted by the United Arab Emirates on March 1-2.
Qureshi made the announcement in a joint session of the Parliament, which continued for a second day today in the wake of Indian aggression against Pakistan.
Reiterating his protest against the OIC's decision to invite Indian Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj to attend the meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers in Abu Dhabi, Qureshi said Pakistan will not attend the session due to the inter-governmental organisation's failure to rescind the invitation to his Indian counterpart.
Mentioning that the "UAE has always helped Pakistan in difficult times", Qureshi noted with regret that despite Pakistan's protest, the OIC's invitation to Swaraj was not rescinded.
"There was no consultation over OIC invitation to Indian foreign minister. India is neither a member nor an observer of the OIC," Qureshi pointed out, adding that he sent two letters - the latest only yesterday - to the UAE calling upon the body to withdraw its invitation to the Indian foreign minister.
Qureshi informed the Parliament that he requested the OIC to either rescind the invitation or postpone the session in view of the prevailing situation, neither of which was done.
"I have [therefore] decided not to attend OIC Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Abu Dhabi," the foreign minister announced.
The 46th session of the OIC’s Council of Foreign Ministers is being hosted by the UAE in Abu Dhabi on March 1-2, under the title “50 Years of Islamic Cooperation: Road Map for Prosperity and Development.”
The UAE’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan will inaugurate the session in the presence of OIC Secretary-General Dr Yousef Al-Othaimeen and representatives of 56 member states and five observer states.
The joint session of the Parliament under Speaker Asad Qaiser is under way for a second day today to discuss the developments arising in the wake of India's violation of the Line of Control (LoC).