MIRPUR (AJK) -  AJK President Sardar Masood Khan said that the Jammu and Kashmir issue should be put on the centre of the global agenda for its early solution.

Pakistan is emerging as a major economy and the world order is in flux and needs a reset for peace, he added during his various engagements in Vienna which included a dialogue with the Austrian think tanks hosted by the Austrian National Defense Academy, according to a message reaching and released to the media.

The president also had meetings and exchange of views with former Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Dr. Michael Spindelegger, President of the Centre for Migration Policy Development; Ambassador Emil Brix, Head of the Austrian Diplomatic Academy; and Dr Adam Lupel, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the New York-based International Peace Institute.

The president said that the people of Jammu and Kashmir did not have much trust in the bilateral processes because time and again India had reneged on its solemn promises to resolve the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the will and wishes of the Kashmiri people. The international community, he said, must step in to stop the bloodshed and massive human rights violations in the Indian Occupied Kashmir because India will not do so on its own. The UN Security Council should implement its resolutions adopted under Chapter VI of the Charter as it is an obligation on the UN. The UN, he said, should also take cognizance of the horrendous human rights and humanitarian crisis in IOK and address the deteriorating peace and security situation in the region. Kashmiris, he said, appealed to the world to help them put an end to the dark night of their suffering.

The president said that Azad Kashmir is the most peaceful place with the lowest crime rate and the highest educational score and is a very popular tourist destination. The state of Azad Kashmir was focused on accelerating the pace of economic development in different sectors and promoting good governance, said the president.

He said that the problem with the out-of-the-box solutions was that they were not backed by the Kashmiri people because no mechanism is in place to ascertain their wishes except the one prescribed by the UN.

Masood said that water should be distributed fairly between India and Pakistan and the Indus Water Treaty be implemented in letter and spirit. India had threatened Pakistan with water aggression and is already building large dams at Kishanganga, Ratle, Sawalkot and Pakul Dal, in violation of the Indus Waters Treaty. He appealed to the World Bank to play its mediatory role by establishing a commission to investigate violations of the treaty.

The president said that Pakistan had made its state more secure by launching Zarb-i-Azb and Radd-ul-Fasad operations and now Pakistan is a safe destination for investment. He said that in Pakistan some 130 million people out of a population of 207 million were under the age of 30 making it the youngest country in the world. Its growing middle class, estimated at around 82 million by Forbes, combined with its strategic geo-economic location will turn it into the next regional economic powerhouse.

The president said that during the war on terrorism, Pakistan had given sacrifices of more than 60,000 lives and it had lost approximately half a trillion dollars in denied economic opportunities. But now, he assured, Pakistan was catching up and has moved towards stability and is regaining economic traction and confidence.

Sardar Masood Khan said that emerging world order should be rule-based, more representative and more democratic. It should ensure full representation of developing countries as stakeholders. The world, he said, had become multipolar and embraced multilateralism for tackling global problems. This would help in promoting the rule of law at the international level.

The AJK president also visited the prestigious Sigmund Freud University and invited its Rector, Alfred Pritz, to visit Azad Kashmir and explore his university's collaboration with Azad Kashmir's five public sector universities in Muzaffarabad, Mirpur, Rawalakot, Kotli and Bagh.