By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: UN Secretary-General António Guterres arrived on a two-day visit to Pakistan to express solidarity with the country braving a colossal climate-induced natural disaster caused by unprecedented rains and floods that have killed 1,391 people since mid-June.
Upon his arrival at an airport near Islamabad, Guterres was received by senior foreign office officials.
During the visit, Secretary General Guterres will have meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and other senior officials to exchange views on the national and global response to this catastrophe caused by climate change.
Guterres will travel to areas most impacted by the climate catastrophe. He will interact with displaced families and first responders in the field, and oversee UN’s humanitarian response work in support of the government’s rescue and relief efforts for millions of affected people.
In a statement, Foreign Office Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar said the Secretary-General’s visit will further raise global awareness about the massive scale of this calamity and the resulting loss of life and widespread devastation. It will contribute towards enhancing commensurate and coordinated international response to the humanitarian and other needs of the 33 million affected Pakistanis.
The spokesperson said the Secretary-General actively supported the $160 million UN Flash Appeal to fund Pakistan’s Flood Response Plan.
Iftikhar said the UN Secretary-General has been consistently stressing the linkage of such disasters with the impacts of climate change and warning the international community about the existential threat to our planet in case climate change was not addressed in a timely and effective manner.
The spokesperson said the Secretary General’s visit will also spotlight the importance of sustained international support for Pakistan through the rehabilitation and reconstruction phase, and for building resilience against future climate shocks.
Last week, the U.N. chief issued a stern warning about the effects of climate change.
“Let’s stop sleepwalking toward the destruction of our planet by climate change,” he said in a video message to a ceremony in Islamabad at the time. “Today, it’s Pakistan. Tomorrow, it could be your country.”
So far, U.N. agencies and several countries have sent dozens of planeloads of aid to Pakistani flood victims. Washington has announced the United States will provide $30 million in assistance to help flood victims.
On Thursday, Sharif told a visiting American diplomat that the world should step up its fight against climate change to avoid more deadly flooding in the impoverished Islamic nation.
Sharif made the comment in a meeting with Derek Chollet, a senior State Department official visiting Islamabad to assess damages and arrange for aid in the wake of floods that have affected 3.3 million people and made more than half a million homeless.
According to the statement, Chollet “affirmed that the U.S. would stand by Pakistan in the wake of this immense challenge, extend vital support, and help affected people rebuild their lives and communities.”
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