Mohsin Soomro
NEW YORK: Pakistan’s permanent representative to United Nations Maleeha Lodhi has said Defeating terrorism, growing the economy and building a peaceful neighborhood are among Pakistan’s top priorities.
She was talking to the faculty members and students from the US Army War College in New Yok on Friday.
The Ambassador said Pakistan is working to overcome the external challenges including promoting peace and security in Afghanistan and normalising relations with India.
“These national priorities frame our international diplomacy and our foreign engagements,” Ms Lodhi said while addressing the participants who visited the Pakistan Mission to the UN in New York.
“With an independent judiciary, a vibrant and free media and an expanding and diverse civil society, democratic institutions and traditions are becoming stronger in Pakistan”, she said.
Referring to the ‘War against terrorism’, the ambassador said Pakistan had turned the tide against terrorism and it is working to eliminate terrorism through a comprehensive strategy, involving forceful law enforcement actions and targeted military operations”.
The ambassador lauded Pakistan Army’s efforts against terrorists and the success in ongoing operation Zarb-e-Azb.
“180,000 troops have been involved in the world’s largest anti-terrorism operation, which was now in its final phase in North Waziristan,” she said.
She briefed the participants on the Quadrilateral Coordination Group that had been formed by Afghanistan, Pakistan, the US and China to give an impetus to peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan.