Pakistan on Thursday categorically rejected Amnesty International’s demand for a probe into Pakistani airstrikes in Kabul four months ago, calling upon the group and the international community at large to probe the interim Afghanistan government’s continued patronage of terrorist groups.
During his weekly press briefing, Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi termed as unfortunate the presentation of such serious allegations without any credible evidence. He said the Afghan Taliban government continued to maintain a permissive environment for several terrorist organizations, including the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Balochistan Liberation Army and other affiliates.
He emphasized that no responsible state can remain passive when its civilians and security forces are routinely targeted, adding any military strikes by Pakistan were undertaken in exercise of its right to self-defense under principles of necessity and as a measure of last resort. He maintained the strikes were only and exclusively against terrorists and their logistical support bases in Afghanistan.
The spokesperson also addressed Pakistan’s statement in support of Saudi Arabia against Houthi aggression, noting Islamabad had reaffirmed that any hostile act against Pakistani flagged vessels or Pakistan’s maritime interests in the Red Sea would be perceived as a grave threat to its national security.
Condemning the Houthis’ continued threats to Saudi Arabia and commercial shipping in the Red Sea, he said this endangered regional security, freedom of navigation and global trade. “Any attack against Pakistani-flagged vessels or against its commercial vessels will be treated as an attack against Pakistan and will be swiftly retaliated. We will do so in our exercise of self-defense,” he said.
He said the determination of what constituted a threat or an attack would remain a technical assessment to be made by Pakistan’s armed forces, which would remain vigilant in the area.
Reiterating that Pakistan desired for all parties to the Middle East to exercise restraint, he said Islamabad was continuing its diplomatic outreach in support of dialogue and diplomacy. He further said Pakistan is committed to implementing all bilateral agreements with Saudi Arabia, including agreements on mutual defense.
“We have not lost hope. We had not lost hope in the darkest days of this conflict cycle, when escalations mounted and there were armed attacks back and forth. Even then, we were not discouraged. We remain hopeful, however grim the situation may be on the ground. It is with the same degree of optimism that we will carry forward our advocacy for dialogue and diplomacy,” he said.
GSP Plus
On the European Union’s fifth GSP report, Andrabi said the assessment is the final monitoring report under the current GSP Plus framework on Pakistan’s compliance with the 27 international conventions.
Appreciating the report’s acknowledgement of Pakistan’s legislative progress during the reporting period and the country’s continued compliance with the international conventions, he said the GSP-plus facility remained central to Pakistan’s economic relationship with the European Union. The initiative supports employment, women’s economic participation, poverty reduction and broader economic development, he said.
According to the spokesperson, Pakistan remains committed to the effective implementation of international conventions underpinning the GSP framework.
“Nevertheless, I would be remiss if I did not express disappointment with the assessment, as the report’s overall narrative does not present a sufficiently balanced picture of Pakistan’s performance. It understates the breadth of reforms undertaken since Pakistan joined GSP Plus in 2014 and places disproportionate emphasis on the lower-than-desirable level of progress in certain areas,” he said.
The report had noted “issues” in Pakistan’s compliance with its GSP-plus commitments and warned that Islamabad would have to address those shortcomings to qualify under the revised GSP framework, due to take effect from Jan. 1, 2027.