Istanbul (GNP): Pakistan and Türkiye voiced satisfaction over the ongoing strengthening and expansion of bilateral relations across political, economic, security and cultural domains, during a meeting between Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Istanbul.
Welcoming the progress made under the Pakistan-Türkiye High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council framework, the two ministers agreed to convene the Council’s next session at an early date. They also discussed matters of regional and international significance and reaffirmed their shared commitment to working closely toward regional peace and stability.
The meeting was also attended by Special Secretary at the United Nations Nabeel Munir, Director General for the United Nations Umar Siddique, First Secretary Qazi Saleem, and Deputy Director to the Foreign Minister Agha Hunain.
Both sides underscored the central importance of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) mechanism in advancing bilateral relations, and welcomed the completion of the landmark Pakistan-Türkiye Declaration on the Strategic Economic Framework and its accompanying Action Plan.
The two countries reaffirmed their shared determination to combat terrorism in all its forms, stressing the importance of addressing its root causes — including unresolved conflicts and situations of foreign occupation — and reiterating that terrorism should never be linked to any particular religion, nationality or civilization. They also called for expanding the scope of the UN Security Council’s 1267 sanctions regime to cover individuals and entities not currently included.
Both sides expressed concern over the growing trend of Islamophobia worldwide and strongly condemned recent terrorist and racially motivated attacks targeting Muslims globally. They referenced earlier joint declarations issued under the HLSCC framework and the decisions reached through that process, and endorsed the outcomes of Working Group meetings held under the Council on February 13, 2020, expressing satisfaction with the progress achieved.
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The statement was issued by the co-chairs of the 6th HLSCC meeting, held in Islamabad on February 14, 2020.
Sohail Majeed is a Special Correspondent at The Diplomatic Insight. He has twelve plus years of experience in journalism & reporting. He covers International Affairs, Diplomacy, UN, Sports, Climate Change, Economy, Technology, and Health.
