Pakistan says that considering the interconnected nature of global trade, the imposition of US tariffs can have far-reaching effects, particularly on developing countries.
At his weekly media briefing in Islamabad on Thursday, Foreign Office Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said Pakistan hopes for a swift and mutually beneficial resolution.
He mentioned that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had constituted a steering committee and a working group to examine the fresh tariffs imposed on Pakistan.
Replying to a question, the Spokesperson said the recent discontinuation of the Global Undergraduate Exchange Programme between Pakistan and the United States marks the end of a fifteen-year engagement that has played a pivotal role in the academic and cultural enrichment of thousands of Pakistani students.
He said Pakistan believes that student exchange programmes play an important role in strengthening bilateral relations by focusing on education, scientific and technological collaborations, and people-to-people contacts.
Regarding the prevailing situation in Gaza, the Spokesperson reaffirmed Pakistan’s full support for the upcoming high-level international Conference on the peaceful settlement of the Palestine dispute and the implementation of a two-state solution, hoping that the moot would rise to the occasion and restore hope in peace and justice through meaningful action.
He also lauded France and Saudi Arabia for co-chairing the preparatory consultations for the June 2025 Conference.
Shafqat Ali Khan said Pakistan sincerely hopes that the June Conference will rise to the occasion and restore hope in peace and justice through meaningful action. He said we believe that in the lead-up to the Conference, the ceasefire must be fully implemented, the blockade on Gaza must be lifted, humanitarian access must be guaranteed, and civilians and humanitarian personnel must be protected.
The Spokesperson said any attempt to displace Palestinians or annex their land forcibly must be unequivocally rejected and effectively prevented.
He also strongly condemned the continued aggression and atrocities committed by Israeli occupying forces and the killing of 15 Palestinian emergency and civil defence workers during direct gunfire in the latest incidence of brutality.
Turning to the situation in India’s Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir, he condemned the Indian authorities’ denial of permission to hold Eid-ul-Fitr prayers at the historic Jama Masjid and Eidgah in Srinagar, as well as on the holy night of Laila-tul-Qadr.
Replying to a question about the passage of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2025 in the Indian Lok Sabha, the Spokesperson termed it an act to dispossess Muslims from their properties, including mosques and shrines and marginalise minorities.
