Pakistan envoy praises HH the Amir's 'timely, courageous message'
Pakistan's ambassador to Qatar Muhammad Aamer has hailed His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani's address to the 81st session of the UN General Assembly as "timely, courageous and squarely on message", saying it charted a clear diplomatic course out of the crisis gripping the region.The envoy said His Highness the Amir had placed dialogue, negotiation and mediation at the heart of his address at a moment when the Gulf could least afford miscalculation."His Highness reminded the world that time does not heal conflicts left without a just settlement, it only compounds their costs. The region has learnt that truth at great price," the ambassador said.He singled out His Highness' call to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and return to negotiations, and to build a regional collective security system based on sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-interference."Qatar's credentials as a trusted mediator are beyond question. When His Highness says a diplomatic solution is both possible and realistic, the world should listen, because Doha has repeatedly turned that conviction into results," he said.On Palestine, the envoy praised the Amir's categorical description of events in Gaza as "genocide in every sense of the word"."It takes moral clarity to say it plainly from that podium. His Highness spoke for the conscience of the Muslim world and for millions beyond it," he said.The envoy said Qatar's and Pakistan's views converged on many of the issues His Highness raised. Both countries back an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem (Al-Quds Al-Sharif) as its capital. Both also insist that Israel honour its ceasefire commitments in full, withdraw from Gaza, lift the blockade and allow unhindered humanitarian access.Islamabad, he noted, shares Doha's position that disputes must be settled through dialogue grounded in international law. It also agrees that the sovereignty of states must be respected, among them Syria, Lebanon, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen.He also stressed a shared concern over the economic fallout of the Gulf crisis. "As His Highness observed, when energy lifelines become instruments of pressure, ordinary people far from the conflict pay through the price of food and medicine. Pakistan feels that acutely," he said."His Highness's warning that the law must apply equally to all, or lose its meaning, is one Pakistan wholeheartedly endorses. On the fundamentals of peace, justice and respect for international law, Qatar and Pakistan stand shoulder to shoulder."The envoy hailed the Amir's closing message. "His Highness showed that steadfastness and flexibility can go hand in hand, and he ended on the most enduring truth of all: that dialogue is the only path that leaves neither victor nor vanquished. That is statesmanship of the highest order, and it is the message this troubled region most needed to hear."