press trust of india
Islamabad, August 14: Pakistan’s new Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi Monday blamed India for the impasse in bilateral ties, saying New Delhi’s “expansionist designs” was the “main hurdle” in constructive relations between the two neighbours.
Addressing the nation on its 70th Independence Day, Abbasi said Pakistan “desires positive and constructive” relations with all countries based on sovereign equality.
Indo-Pak ties nosedived after a series of attacks last year, including the Uri strike, carried out by the Pakistan- based terror outfits. Following the attacks, India boycotted the SAARC Summit, which was scheduled to be held in November last in Pakistan. “Our government has invariably made efforts to initiate the process of meaningful dialogue and adoption of peaceful means to resolve the issues but unfortunately the expansionist designs of India have remained the main hurdle in this regard,” Abbasi said as Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang attended the celebrations as a “special guest” of the country.
Yang arrived in Pakistan Sunday for the event. Abbasi said that China and Pakistan have “always stood by each other in difficult times and their friendship will stand the test of time and grow with coming generations.” He called on the international community to “play its role” in resolving regional conflicts, “particularly the Kashmir dispute” between India and Pakistan in conformity with the UN resolutions to ensure durable peace in the region.
Abbasi, 58, was sworn-in as Pakistan’s 18th prime minister August 1 after the Supreme Court disqualified the incumbent Nawaz Sharif for dishonesty following the Panama papers scandal. “The people of South Asia have suffered enormously in the last fifty years due to the festering conflicts. Until and unless those conflicts are resolved amicably the people of the region cannot achieve prosperity and progress,” he said.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General QamarJaved Bajwa hoisted the largest national flag at Wagah Border on the eve of the country’s 70th independence anniversary, the media reported Monday. The flag, made entirely in Pakistan, was hoisted on a 400-feet pole at midnight. The size of the flag is 120 feet by 80 feet, reports Dawn news. The flag is the highest one in South Asia and the eight highest in the world. The hoisting ceremony was followed by grand fireworks display and an address by Gen Bajwa. “Some 77 years ago, Pakistan resolution was passed in Lahore. Pakistan came into being on the night of 27th Ramazan…it was a blessed night. “Today, the country is progressing on the path of the law and the Constitution. All Institutions are working properly. We will make Pakistan the country of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Allama Iqbal (poet). “We have rendered many sacrifices…We will never forget our martyrs. We will execute each and every terrorist in Pakistan. I want to tell our enemies, whether they are in the in east or west, that your bullets will end but not the chests of our jawans (soldiers),” the army chief said.