Pakistan to invite P-5 countries over India’s airspace violations: FM

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan will invite the representatives of the permanent member (P-5) countries of the United Nations Security Council on India’s recent violation of Pakistani airspace, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Friday.

India’s unidentified supersonic missile had crashed in Pakistan’s Mian Channu, according to the military spokesman on Thursday.

FM Qureshi said Pakistan would discuss with the P-5 representatives the situation and India’s repeated violations.

Terming India’s violation of Pakistan’s air space an act of aggression, he called upon the international community to take notice of the situation.

In a statement, the foreign minister said the Indian charge d’affaires had been summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the second time violation of the same kind.

FM Qureshi said the act had endangered human lives as the aircraft of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the domestic flights of Pakistan could be hit by the missile.

He said India would have to be answerable to its aggression, adding that Pakistan would always be ready to counter it.

He mentioned that the ruling party in India was promoting Hindutva policies, adding that 21 members of the EU parliament had written a letter to the Speaker of Lok Sabha on the deteriorating human rights situation.

The foreign minister said Pakistan had exposed the double standard of India before the world.

He said Pakistan was in favor of maintaining good relations with all neighbours including India, however, would not compromise on its sovereignty.

The Charge d’Affaires (Cd’A) of the Republic of India in Islamabad was summoned to the Foreign Office today and conveyed Pakistan’s strong protest over the unprovoked violation of its airspace by an Indian origin ‘super-sonic flying object’ which entered into Pakistan from ‘Suratgarh’ India at 1843 hrs. (PST) on 9 March2022 and fell to ground near Mian Chunnu city in Pakistan at around 1850 hrs. the same day causing damage to civilian property. The Indian diplomat was conveyed that the imprudent launch of the flying object not only caused damage to civilian property but also put at risk human lives on ground. Besides, the flight path of the flying object endangered several domestic/international flights within Pakistani airspace and could have resulted in a serious aviation accident as well as civilian casualties. The Indian Cd’A was told to convey to the Government of India Pakistan’s strong condemnation of this blatant violation of Pakistani airspace in contravention of the established international norms and Aviation safety protocols. Such irresponsible incidents were also reflective of India’s disregard for Air safety and callousness towards regional peace and stability. Pakistan calls for a thorough and transparent investigation of the incident, the outcome of which must be shared with Pakistan. Moreover, the Government of India is cautioned to be mindful of the unpleasant consequences of such negligence and take effective measures to avoid the recurrence off such violations in future.