FO rejects former Canadian minister's remarks against Pakistan

Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri has rejected remarks made by a former Canadian minister against Pakistan, saying his comments are based on a lack of understanding of the Afghan peace process and are misleading.

In a statement, the FO said: “We strongly condemn the unwarranted comments by former Canadian minister Chris Alexander, making unfounded & misleading assertions about…Pakistan’s role in #AfghanPeaceProcess. Such remarks betray a complete lack of understanding of the issue as well as ignorance of facts on ground.”

The FO said that Pakistan has taken up the matter with the government of Canada. “The matter has been taken up with the Canadian side. We have urged the Canadian authorities to take steps to address this motivated and malicious smear campaign.”

The FO also reiterated Pakistan’s policy on Afghanistan and said that international powers have begun to appreciate what Prime Minister Imran Khan had been saying for a long time.

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“Now when the world has acknowledged what…Pakistan & PM @ImranKhanPTI have consistently maintained about there being no military solution to the conflict in #Afghanistan & the need for an inclusive, broad-based & comprehensive political settlement, such gratuitous commentary is deplorable,” it added.

On August 1, former Canadian minister Chris Alexander posted a message on Twitter, saying: “Taliban fighters waiting to cross the border from Pakistan to Afghanistan… anyone still denying that Pakistan is engaged in an ‘act of aggression’ against Afghanistan is complicit in proxy war & war crimes.”