Taking exception to India’s diplomatic efforts to isolate Pakistan on the issue of terrorism, Islamabad’s envoy to India Abdul Basit on Monday said the country has been the worst victim of the menace.
Pakistani High Commissioner Abdul Basit said the issue of Jammu and Kashmir was the "root cause" of all problems between the two countries and that Pakistan does not need "misplaced jingoism and hypernationalism" to pursue its foreign policy objectives.
"How on earth it is possible to isolate a country on terrorism when that country itself is the worst victim of terrorism," he said while speaking at the Indian Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies here.
As the tension in Indo-Pak ties continues to simmer, Basit called for sustained diplomacy to forge an "effective cooperative paradigm" to improve relations.
It is only through sustained diplomacy that Pakistan and India can address their issues and forge an effective cooperative paradigm to their mutual benefit, he said.
Talking about his country's ties with India, he said Kashmir issue "has made us mutually antagonistic. Let its just resolution unite us in peace and prosperity."
"Pakistan is a proud country of 200 million people. It does not need misplaced jingoism and hypernationalism to pursue its foreign policy objectives," he said.
In the wake of Uri terror attack carried out by Pakistani terrorists, India has been trying to isolate Pakistan on terror internationally.
Basit also spoke on the controversy over release of Karan Johar’s film ‘Ae Dil Hai Mushkil’ which features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan and said he was glad that flick was now out of ‘mushkil’ and pointed out that Pakistan has never tried to snap cultural relations between the two countries.
He said that while Indian artistes have never faced any issues performing in Pakistan, but artistes like Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Atif Aslam’s concerts have been cancelled in India.
He added that though Indian television channels have now been banned in Pakistan, up till now the country had been screening Indian TV shows and movies while India had not allowed Pakistani channels.
