ISLAMABAD: The joint-session of Parliament on what Pakistan’s role should be in the crisis unfolding in Yemen continued...
ISLAMABAD: The joint-session of Parliament on what Pakistan’s role should be in the crisis unfolding in Yemen continued for the third consecutive day.
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has arrived in Pakistan on a two-day trip to discuss the situation in Yemen with Prime Nawaz Sharif as well as Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif.
During yesterday’s session, the PM called on Iran to get involved in talks on security in Yemen.
Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif has repeatedly said the conflict in Yemen should be overcome diplomatically. "All countries must work toward establishing stability and preventing the spread of insecurity in the region," Zarif said last month.
The joint-session of Parliament has been adjourned till 4 PM on Thursday
Government stance on Yemen not clear: Ghani
Senator Syed Ghani in his address praised the government for calling the joint-session of Parliament. The senator, however, emphasised that the government’s stance on Yemen was not clear.
Ghani added that the issue could not move forward unless the reality of it was conveyed in Parliament.
Malik, Qureshi seeks details on Yemen
Senator Rehman Malik and PTI MNA Shah Mehmood Qureshi spoke to reporters outside the Parliament and asked the government to provide details of the Saudi request for military assistance.
“A 2-3 point agenda of what discussions have been held should be presented and discussed in the assembly,” Malik said.
“Till now there is no clarity in the position of the government,” said Qureshi adding that the country’s political parties were opposed to sending troops to Yemen.
Conflict in Yemen is a civil war, says Mazari
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Information Secretary Shireen Mazari said that the issue was not of Saudi Arabia’s territorial sovereignty or integrity, as it was being portrayed, but this was a civil war inside Yemen.
“We have to decide as a nation if we want to be part of this civil war, or stay out of this war and strive for peace. If we want to strive for peace, we will have to stay neutral and become a party to this conflict,” she said.
“If there is any threat to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, it will be our responsibility as Muslims to protect them. But there is no threat there,” she said.
She said that Pakistan should learn from the mistakes it had made in the past.
“After 9/11 we said we will only give (the Americans) logistical support, but we opened everything up for CIA and Blackwater,” she said.
“We should learn from our history, defend ourselves, not the entire Muslim world,” she added.
She said that her party’s policy was clear on the issue: “Our military is already overstretched. This is not our war. We will not turn our army into camel fodder for others’ wars. “
She said that Pakistan should oppose this principle of the ‘coalition of the willing’ and bypassing UN charter.
“Just like the US attacked Iraq, Saudi Arabia is forming a coalition of the willing. Why did Saudi Arabia not go to the United Nations?” she asked.
War in Yemen not our war: Muzaffar Hussain Shah
“The war in Yemen is not our war,” said Senator Muzaffar Hussain Shah. He added that the crisis in Yemen was political and not a military one. “It is not a crisis that evokes or warrants military action.”
He emphasised that the crisis needed to be addressed in political terms.