Qureshi, Swiss FM discuss COVID-19 epidemic

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi held a telephonic conversation with Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis of Switzerland to discuss matters related to the COVID-19 epidemic.

Expressing deep condolences over loss of precious lives, the FM Qureshi commended efforts made by the Swiss government to control the outbreak, a press statement issued here on Saturday said.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi also lauded projecting the Pakistan’s flag on Matterhorn Mountain a few days back as a special gesture of solidarity.

Underscoring that a global recession was imminent, and the pandemic had seriously impacted the developing world, foreign minister Qureshi highlighted Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Global Initiative for Debt Relief.

FM Qureshi also highlighted the ongoing restrictions in the Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJ&K), which were hampering dissemination of information, and preventing unfettered supply of medicines and other essentials needed to battle the Covid-19.

He also noted that the Hindutva-inspired Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Government in India was using the pandemic to demonize India’s Muslim minority in the context of Covid-19, an attempt that should be rejected by the international community.

During the telephonic conversation, the two foreign ministers agreed to stay closely engaged.