ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office criticised on Thursday Islamabad-based European Union diplomats for unspecified violation of diplomatic norms.
“We expect ambassadors of the EU as well as others to abide by the norms of internationally-recognised diplomatic behaviour and not comment on our internal matters,” FO spokesperson Tasneem Aslam said at a weekly media briefing.
The remarks left everyone, including EU diplomats, puzzled about what was the spokesperson referring to. She was replying to a question about EU Parliament’s resolution adopting a report on ‘Pakistan’s regional role and political relations with the EU’.
The spokesperson’s specific reference to EU ambassadors meant that she was referring to something else deemed ‘objectionable’ by the FO.
A source claimed that FO had taken a strong exception to EU diplomats meeting representatives of Voice of Missing Baloch Persons (VMBP). The long march representatives had met the diplomats and later called on the EU Ambassador Lar-Gunnar Wigemark.
Mr Wigemark had in a separate statement, unrelated to the VMBP long march, asked Pakistan to fulfil its pledge of fully implementing the 27 international conventions it had signed and ratified and made as part of the ‘GSP+’ commitments.
The spokesperson’s remarks did refer to those comments also, but without naming the EU Ambassador.
Ms Aslam contention was that accession to the international conventions was not related to negotiations on ‘GSP+’ trade preferences, but for the sake of human rights in the country.
“The process for our accession to these conventions started long before the GSP Plus engagement with the European Union. Primarily, we have done it for our own people. These conventions and covenants require a number of measures that the state parties are supposed to take, including enabling legislations. We have been doing that from the 1990s and this process continues,” she said.
The spokesperson added: “It is for our own people. It is to inculcate a culture of respect for human rights and it’s for us to proceed, keeping in view the requirements and the changes that are required in the law, its implementation and giving up certain practices.”
SAUDI ARABIA: About security talks with Saudi Arabia, Ms Aslam said the talks were in progress and nothing had been finalised yet.
She said that the security negotiations with Saudi Arabia were under a long-term security commitment with the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia has already given $1.5billion assistance to stabilise Pakistan economy, but it is not clear if the aid was in any way linked to the ongoing security dialogue, which has a strong emphasis on regional situation.