ISLAMABAD, Oct 16 (APP):Federal Minister for Human Rights, Dr Shireen M Mazari Tuesday stressed the need to have effective diplomacy over the issue of granting Pakistan the membership of Nuclear Supplier Group (NSG).
She said Pakistan is being discriminated over granting membership of NSG which is a matter of concern.
She said recent nuclear agreement between India and United States has became the reason of overall nuclear race in the region and also created power imbalance in South Asia.
The countries including United States, United Kingdom, France and others which were signatories of Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty are violating its clauses.
She said increasing traditional and non-traditional weapons is a threat to peace in the region.
She also expressed concern over Indian aggression at Line of Control as well as in Indian held Kashmir.
Shireen Mazari stressed the need to give Kashmiri people their due right of self determination instead of holding merely discussions.
She said India has also expressed its intention of carrying out immediate and limited attacks on Pakistan which can create chaos and instability in the whole region.
Peaceful relations between Pakistan and India are indispensable for durable peace in South Asian region, she said.
Dr Mazari stressed that the Kashmir issue must be resolved in accordance with UNSC resolutions which calls for a UN supervised plebiscite.
She also pointed out that Pakistan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government would shortly put forth conflict resolution model for Kashmir dispute.
She also emphasized on having regional Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) for non proliferation of nuclear weapons.
Talking about strategic stability, she said the concept needs to be understood with respect to the prevailing security environment in South Asia.
She indicated that there are four major threats to the strategic stability in South Asia including growing conventional asymmetry with India owing to its massive military modernisation, operationalisation of India’s second-strike capabilities, introduction of BMD systems and purchase of S 400 system and changes in Indian nuclear doctrine.
The participants discussed the impact of the failure of Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on regional and global security, global and regional developments and strategic stability in South Asia.
In the first session titled “Impact of Failure of JCPOA on Regional and Global Security”, Ambassador Ali Asghar Soltanieh, Former Permanent Representative of Iran to the UN and IAEA talked about the aftermath of Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) and US withdrawal from the JCPOA.
Ambassador Soltanieh said the Trump administration unilaterally withdrew from JCPOA.
He said this act is undoubtedly in full contravention of the JCPOA, UNSC Resolution 2231, and also disregards multilateralism.
He also talked about short and long-term consequences of the violation of JCPOA and UNSC Resolution 2231 by US.
Bruno Tertrais, Deputy Director of the Foundation for Strategic Research (FRS) presented the French perspective on JCPOA.
He said France was trying to maintain EU unity on the JCPOA issue and vis a vis the US. He said that following US withdrawal from JCPOA, France has tried to continue dialogue with the US.
Tariq Rauf, consultant on nuclear governance matters based in Vienna, said that reduction of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) is the need of hour.
He said Ban Treaty is facing problems and that cyber vulnerabilities are emerging in nuclear facilities.
Ambassador Dr Sameh Aboul-Enein, Egypt’s Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs talked about the Middle East Nuclear Weapon Free Zone.
He said regional parties should enter directly into a phase of substantive and procedural preparation for the Middle East Weapon for Mass Destruction Free Zone (WMDFZ) conference as soon as possible. Conference coordinators should invite Israel and Iran, along with the League of Arab States, to engage in the process of agreeing on a conference agenda. There must be a commitment by all relevant states to attend.
During the last session of the conference focusing on Strategic Stability in South Asia, Subrata Ghoshroy, Research Affiliate with the Programme in Science, Technology and Society at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, discussed US Nuclear Posture, misconception about calling South Asia a dangerous place and geo-strategic significance of the S-400 system.
Regarding India’s decision to purchase the Russian S-400 Air defence system, he said it was Delhi’s strategic decision and “a message for the US that India isn’t totally in its pocket.”
He also said that PM Narendra Modi should rise above narrow electoral calculations and respond positively to Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s gesture for dialogue.
He stressed that peoples of Pakistan and India want peace and friendly relations between them.
He said, “We cannot allow Kashmir and the Kashmiris to bleed for ever like the Palestinians.”
Pakistan's National News Agency