BANJUL: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Sunday met with foreign ministers of Turkiye and Azerbaijan to discuss bilateral trade and other matters of mutual interest on the Margins of the 15th Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit in Banjul, Gambia.
Ishaq Dar reached the West African country on Wednesday where he is leading Pakistan’s delegation to raise the issues of Gaza and Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) at the OIC moot from May 4 to 5.
During his meeting with Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, the two mulled over the friendly relations between the two brotherly nations along with the commitment to strengthen bilateral ties, especially in the economic, trade, and defence sectors.
Prior to that, Dar met with Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov wherein they discussed deepening bilateral cooperation in trade, connectivity, energy, and people-to-people contacts and stressed the importance of dialogue at the political level.
Dar also felicitated the Azeri foreign minister on winning the bid to host the COP29 summit and expressed Pakistan’s interest in cooperation on climate change.
He also expressed gratitude for Azerbaijan’s principled stance on IIOJK.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister’s Crucial Meetings
A day earlier, Dar held meetings with delegates of several nations including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kuwait and Qatar.
During his interaction with Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, both discussed strengthening strategic and economic relations, and enhancing investments between the two nations while reiterating the call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
They also highlighted the importance of OIC’s role in addressing challenges concerning the Muslim Ummah including Islamophobia and the situations in Palestine and Kashmir.
