Pakistan joins other nations of the world in commemorating the 71st anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. We believe that the United Nations is the best forum for the international community to deal with the multifarious challenges that our complex and interconnected world faces today.
Pakistan attaches great importance to multilateral cooperation. We have an abiding commitment to the principles and purposes of the UN Charter and continue to actively contribute towards their attainment. Pakistan has maintained a strong and leading role at the United Nations in promoting the collective objectives of peace and security, development and human rights.
Despite the challenges faced domestically in the fight against terrorism, we remain a major participant in the United Nations Peacekeeping, the most tangible manifestation of our contribution to the maintenance of international peace and security. Over the last five and a half decades, more than 170,000 Pakistani peacekeepers have participated in UN Peacekeeping Missions around the world and 146 Pakistani peacekeepers have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. We are determined to fulfill this obligation in the times to come. Pakistan also hosts the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP), one of the oldest UN peacekeeping missions, which continues to play a vital role in observing cease fire in the disputed State of Jammu and Kashmir.
The United Nations is seen as a symbol of hope by the oppressed peoples of the world. Since 8 July 2016, following the martyrdom of Kashmiri youth leader Burhan Muzaffar Wani, the people of Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir have been subjected to the worst oppression and human rights abuses by the Indian occupation forces. The Kashmiri people look towards the United Nations to ensure accountability of those responsible for these atrocities and to help realize their right of self-determination promised to them by international community as stipulated in the UN Security Council resolutions.
The world today faces many evolving threats and grave challenges ranging from the maintenance of international peace and security to sustainable development, climate change and the fight against poverty and hunger. These challenges can best be addressed by a strong and effective United Nations. Today is an occasion for the international community to reaffirm its full political support and commitment to the United Nations to ensure the success of its noble objectives. Pakistan will always be in the forefront of this cause.
Islamabad
24 October 2016