António Guterres in Pakistan began a three-day official visit on Tuesday when the United Nations Secretary-General arrived in Islamabad at the invitation of Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, ARY News reported, citing a Foreign Office spokesperson.
Acting Foreign Secretary Ambassador Nabeel Munir received the UN chief upon his arrival in the federal capital. The visit is set to include a series of high-level engagements with Pakistan’s civilian and military leadership.
According to the Foreign Office, António Guterres in Pakistan will hold meetings with the President, the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, and the Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces. The discussions are expected to cover a broad agenda centred on Pakistan’s cooperation with the world body.
The UN Secretary-General will also visit the Headquarters of the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan, and attend a briefing at the National Disaster Management Authority Pakistan.
The Foreign Office said the trip will feature other engagements during which Pakistan’s efforts towards strengthening multilateralism and international peace and security, as well as its strides towards disaster preparedness and early warning, will be highlighted.
“The visit will provide an opportunity to reaffirm Pakistan’s longstanding cooperation with the United Nations and exchange views on regional and international developments,” the Foreign Office said. It added that the visit reflected Pakistan’s continued support for multilateralism with the United Nations at its core, as well as its commitment to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.
UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, while discussing the secretary-general’s visit, said Pakistan had over the years demonstrated its commitment to the United Nations through its contributions to UN peacekeeping and its diplomatic efforts to bring parties together when dialogue was needed.
“This spirit is something that we have seen time and again over the years, and it is one of Pakistan’s greatest contributions to our shared world,” Dujarric said.
The itinerary places particular emphasis on Pakistan’s role in UN peacekeeping and disaster management. The visit to the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan headquarters and the briefing at the National Disaster Management Authority Pakistan reflect the focus on those areas.
Officials said the engagements would allow both sides to review the breadth of the partnership, from peacekeeping deployments to humanitarian and disaster-response coordination, and to discuss the regional and international issues of mutual concern.
The three-day programme also comes against the backdrop of Pakistan’s repeated calls for continued international engagement on matters affecting the region, with Islamabad positioning its contributions to multilateral institutions as a central pillar of its foreign policy.
Pakistan has long been a major contributor to UN peacekeeping missions, a point underscored by UN officials while announcing the visit. The Foreign Office’s statement similarly framed the trip as a reaffirmation of that cooperation and of Pakistan’s support for the UN Charter.
The visit is expected to conclude after the scheduled meetings and briefings, with the Foreign Office describing it as an opportunity to exchange views on regional and international developments and to reaffirm longstanding ties with the United Nations.
Source: ARY News