By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar left Beijing on Tuesday for New York, where he is scheduled to take part in a United Nations Security Council open debate on preserving the core principles of the UN Charter and reinforcing the world body’s central place in international affairs.
The trip, announced in a statement issued the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, underscores Islamabad’s longstanding emphasis on multilateral diplomacy at a time when the United Nations faces growing questions about its effectiveness in managing conflicts and global crises. Dar’s itinerary also includes a meeting of an informal coalition of nations pushing for changes to the international governance system.
The Security Council session, set for this week, will be chaired by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The debate carries the formal title “Maintenance of International Peace and Security: Upholding the Purposes and Principles of the UN Charter and Strengthening the UN-centred International System.” Pakistan welcomed the Chinese initiative, describing it as timely. “Pakistan welcomes this timely initiative by China, which highlights the importance of strengthening multilateralism and upholding the central role of the United Nations in addressing today’s complex global challenges,” the ministry’s statement said.
On Thursday, Dar is expected to attend a session of the Group of Friends on Global Governance. The gathering, whose theme is “Reforming and Improving Global Governance, Working Together to Address Global Challenges,” brings together representatives from 43 countries, among them China, Pakistan, and Palestine. The group was launched in December of last year as a platform to coordinate efforts to overhaul the mechanisms that shape international decision-making.
The ministry said Dar would also hold a series of bilateral meetings with other foreign ministers and senior United Nations officials while in New York. The discussions are expected to cover a range of issues related to peace, security, and development, though specific topics were not detailed in the statement. The visit reflects Pakistan’s consistent position that the United Nations remains the indispensable forum for tackling transnational problems. “Pakistan remains a steadfast supporter of multilateralism and stands ready to contribute constructively to collective efforts for global peace, security, and development,” the foreign ministry said.
Dar’s itinerary comes as Pakistan, a two-term member of the Security Council in recent years, continues to press for greater representation of developing nations in global institutions. The Group of Friends, though still relatively new, has positioned itself as a voice for those seeking more equitable and effective structures for addressing everything from climate change to armed conflict.
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