Highlights
- "I emphasise the need to resolve the Jammu and Kashmir dispute," the Pak minister said
- This should be done in accordance with the wishes of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, he added
- Iqbal also admitted that his country's food station is "fragile"
Pakistan Minister Ahsan Iqbal has warned India of its policies in Kashmir and has said it could have "potentially catastrophic consequences" from another conflict. The statement came while Ahsan Iqbal was addressing a news conference at the United Nations, where he also admitted to a 'fragile' flood situation in Pakistan.
"If the tensions created by India's current policies in occupied Kashmir and aggressive postures are left unattended, it could lead to another conflict in the region with potentially catastrophic consequences," Iqbal said.
Listing a host of complaints about India's treatment of the union territory, he said, "I emphasise the need to resolve the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the resolutions of the Security Council and the wishes of the people of Jammu and Kashmir."
Iqbal admitted that his country's food station is "fragile" and that it came to the "brink" of a Sri Lanka-like scenario but turned his attention to Kashmir, which does not face a "fragile" food situation like the part of it under Pakistan occupation.
"Pakistan's food security situation has become fragile (and) we will need to import wheat this year, whereas the supply chain of wheat at global level is already disrupted," Iqbal said.
The government of Prime Minister Shehbas Sharif has taken some tough measures and "saved Pakistan from Sri Lanka-like situation where almost we were at the brink of that scenario".
"We had analysts predicting how many weeks will it take for Pakistan to become like Sri Lanka," but managed to avert it, he said.
In Washington, the International Monetary Fund announced on Wednesday that its staff had reached an agreement with Pakistan for $1.177 billion in emergency funding, but that would have to be approved by the Executive Board.
Iqbal said that his government would now have to stabilise the country's economy.
(With inputs from IANS)
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