Founder of Pakistan Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah had defined the foreign policy of the new-born country and its relations with other countries in 1948:
” Our Foreign Policy is one of friendliness and goodwill towards all nations of the world. We do not cherish aggressive designs against any country or nation. …… Pakistan will never be found lacking in extending material and moral support to the oppressed and suppressed peoples’ of the world or in upholding the principles of the United Nations Charter”.
In pursuance of these guiding principles, Pakistan has been extending moral, diplomatic and political support to all oppressed and suppressed people around the world in general and in particular to the struggling, suffering and bleeding Kashmiris on all their black days observance.
Kashmir Solidarity Day was also yet again observed on February 05, 2025, by the civil and military leadership. The people of Pakistan as well as of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) reiterated their continued moral, political and diplomatic support to the Kashmiris till they secure freedom from India by exercising the right of self-determination in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.
Addressing the special session of the AJK Constituent Assembly in Muzaffarabad, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif quite categorically stated that Kashmir will remain the cornerstone of Pakist an’s foreign policy and quite affirmatively reiterated unwavering moral, diplomatic and political support to Kashmiris until they get their right of self-determination.
Despite the promises made before the international community by the Indian leaders to give the Kashmiris an opportunity to decide their future themselves, the plebiscite has not been held so far.
The long unresolved Kashmir dispute is a source of lingering conflict and tension between neighbouring nuclear powers, India and Pakistan. It originated when the people of Jammu and Kashmir were denied their fundamental right of self-determination to decide their future themselves after the partition of the Indian sub-continent and the emergence of two sovereign independent states of Pakistan and India in August 1947.
Valley’s Hindu Maharaja had acceded to India through an improper and illegal Instrument of Accession on October 27, 1947, and the same day India had airlifted its forces in Srinagar and forcibly occupied the valley against the aspirations of the Kashmiris.
Unhappy over this rather ugliest development against their wishes, Kashmiris started agitating and launched an unarmed struggle to secure their birthright of self-determination and get rid of Indian security forces.
On being approached by India in January 1948, the UN Security Council through its successive resolutions nullified the Indian invasion and called for the settlement of the dispute by giving the Kashmiris the right of self-determination so that they decide their future themselves. Despite the promises made before the international community by the Indian leaders to give the Kashmiris an opportunity to decide their future themselves, the plebiscite has not been held so far.
Kashmiris’ struggle for unarmed freedom struggle from Indian shackles has been continuing indigenously for more than seventy-five decades and it has been picking up tempo with every passing day as the Indian security forces continue martyring the Kashmiri’s freedom movement leaders but also brutally gunning down unarmed Kashmiri men, women, youth and girls and children ruthlessly and mercilessly over the years under the draconian laws.
Kashmiris have all along been protesting and observing black days and resorting to strikes to keep reminding the international community in general and the UNO in particular about the bloodiest, ugliest and inhuman atrocities being committed on unarmed people demanding their birthright of freedom.
On all such occasions of black days, strikes and protests, civil and military leadership as well as the people of Pakistan have been voicing their unstinted support to their Kashmiri brethren and sisters, condemning the Indian atrocities on the Kashmiris and reminding the international community of its obligation towards the suffering population of Indian occupied Kashmir to force India to implement the UN Security Council resolutions.
The massive lockdown in the form of the curfew imposed throughout the occupied territory on August 5, 2019, by the Indian Government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an unprecedented manner had not dampened their high spirits in any manner. They were determined to continue their struggle till they achieved their cherished objective of freedom from Indian shackles.
Pakistan has all along been extending full political, diplomatic and moral support to the Kashmiris in their just indigenous struggle for securing their right of self-determination as enshrined in the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council.
The civil and military leadership of Pakistan is availing every opportunity of their contacts with foreign dignitaries within the country or abroad. They duly highlight the Kashmir issue in their interaction with foreign dignitaries urging them to play effective roles to pressure the Indian Government to implement UN Security Council resolutions as the lingering unresolved Kashmir dispute is posing serious threats to the peace and stability of the region.
While the occupying Indian security forces are continuing their brutalities and atrocities, the determination on the part of the Kashmiri men, women and children is gaining strength with every passing day to continue their struggle till they secure freedom by exercising their birthright of self-determination by the UN Security Council resolutions, flagrantly continuously being denied by India quite shamefully, no matter how much sacrifices they have to offer. Kashmiris are continuing their freedom struggle and Pakistan’s civil and military leadership as well as the people are also continuing to extend their moral, political and diplomatic support unstintingly at all levels as they believe the Kashmiri struggle is just and without resolving the lingering Kashmir issue, the partition of the Indian sub-continent remains incomplete as Kashmir is the lifeline of Pakistan.
The writer is a Lahore-based freelance journalist, columnist and retired Deputy Controller (News), Radio Pakistan, Islamabad and can be reached at zahidriffat@gmal.com