Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s President, Dr Arif Alvi, on Monday called for shunning war strategies and instead focusing on peace strategies to promote global peace and cooperation. He said that the world’s priority should be to address global issues, such as global warming, hunger, climate change, poverty, pandemics, illiteracy, and diseases, rather than spending trillions of dollars on destructive weapons.
He further stated that the world is faced with the challenges of illiteracy, hunger, and poverty that could be overcome by spending nearly a trillion dollars, which was far lower than the military spending by the developed world.
President Alvi expressed these views while talking to a delegation of foreign military officers presently undergoing training at Command and Staff College, Quetta. The foreign military officers called on him at Aiwan-e-Sadr.
Talking to the course participants, the President said that war was never the solution to any issue as it only brought devastation and misery to mankind, and emphasized the need for talks and reconciliation that could help find durable solutions to global and regional problems.
He stated that wars had caused destruction in several regions of the world, and Africa and the Middle East had been especially ravaged due to wars imposed by other countries and internecine conflict. He highlighted that re-alignments and polarization were taking place worldwide, and the developing countries should remain neutral in global rivalries.
President Alvi lauds ASEAN’s role in promoting regional cooperation
While talking about regional cooperation, President Alvi said that other regional organizations, including ASEAN, were very successful and effective in the promotion of regional and economic cooperation, whereas, regrettably, SAARC could not achieve its goals due to India’s hegemonic attitude and the imposition of its will over other smaller countries of the region.
President Alvi said that the resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir issue was the key to regional peace and prosperity. Unfortunately, India needed to implement UNSC resolutions on the Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Dispute.
He urged the global community to help implement UNSC resolutions on the IIOJ&K dispute.
The President also highlighted the sacrifices and achievements rendered by Pakistan against terrorism. He said that Pakistan single-handedly defeated the menace of terrorism.
