Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday said Pakistan would no more join any alliance for any other country’s war rather play the role of a “reconciliator or bridge-builder”.

“Pakistan has learned lessons from its foreign policy of last four decades and we will not fight someone else’s war,” the prime minister said addressing the concluding session of Margalla Dialogue 2019 held here on ‘Peace and development in South Asia, Middle East and Central Asia (SAMECA)’.

The two-day dialogue organized by Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI) gathered security and political experts from 13 countries to discuss scenario of current challenges in the region.

During the four sessions, the experts deliberated on different regional and current issues including Kashmir issue, Afghan conflict, Middle East situation, Pakistan’s role in the geopolitical situation, cybersecurity, climate change and water security.

The prime minister recalled that Pakistan suffered immensely being front line state during 1980’s Afghan Jihad and the American war on terror following the 9/11 incident.

He said though the foreign funding flowed into Pakistan during wars, however the cost paid in shape of disaster in society was much higher.

“The impact on society is yet to analyze the gravity of negativity that these wars inflicted upon Pakistan,” he said.

“For this reason, we have now decided to play role of bridge-builders and reconciliators,” he added.

About foreign policy of two major world powers, the prime minister said China’s focus on infrastructure development had a superior standing as compared to the United States which spent trillions of dollars on wars against other countries.

Imran Khan said Pakistan was heading towards the path of progress by taking corrective measures including introducing ease-of-doing business mechanism, and promotion of tourism and sports in the country.

He said Pakistan was making continuous efforts to restore peace in the neighbourhood including promotion of Afghan peace process and also through reconciliatory efforts between Saudi Arabia and Iran to ease the conflict.