Pakistan's UN envoy, Ambassador Muhammad Usman Iqbal Jadoon, criticized the disproportionate supply of conventional weapons to a particular South Asian nation, indirectly referencing India. Speaking at a Security Council session on curbing small arms misuse, Jadoon highlighted the concerning rise in global military spending and the imbalanced military investments in South Asia.
Expressing worry over the excessive conventional arms provided to this nation, he stressed its potential to upset regional stability, intensify disputes, and escalate conflicts between nuclear-armed states. Pakistan emphasized its commitment to a balanced strategic framework in South Asia, advocating for conflict resolution aligned with UN resolutions.
Jadoon also highlighted concerns about terrorist groups, like Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan, possessing advanced weaponry, urging global intervention to curb illicit arms trade that facilitates these organizations.
Key Points:
1. Pakistan raised concerns at the UN regarding what it perceives as a disproportionate supply of conventional weapons to a particular South Asian state, without explicitly naming India, deeming it a catalyst for regional instability and a threat to the region's balance.
2. Ambassador Muhammad Usman Iqbal Jadoon, Pakistan’s Deputy Permanent Representative at the UN, emphasized the need to abandon double standards in addressing South Asian affairs, urging a shift away from narrow strategic and commercial motives.
3. Addressing a Security Council debate on the misuse of small arms and light weapons, Ambassador Jadoon criticized the escalating global military expenditures and highlighted destabilizing trends in South Asia, notably the significant military spending of one state, indirectly referencing India.
4. Pakistan expressed serious apprehensions over the generous provision of conventional weaponry to this unnamed state, citing concerns about regional instability, hindrance in resolving disputes, reinforcement of a sense of dominance, and the potential for conflict escalation between nuclear-armed states.
5. Emphasizing Pakistan's disinterest in engaging in an arms race, Ambassador Jadoon reiterated the country's commitment to establishing a strategic restraint regime in South Asia, emphasizing the importance of maintaining a balance in conventional forces.
6. In the context of the Kashmir dispute, Pakistan stressed that lasting peace and stability in the region hinge upon resolving disputes in alignment with Security Council resolutions and ensuring equilibrium between conventional and strategic military forces.
7. Pakistan drew attention to the possession of modern weaponry by terrorist groups like Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan (TJP), underscoring the need for international scrutiny into how these groups obtained sophisticated arms, despite lacking the capability to manufacture them.
8. While Pakistan claimed success in neutralizing these terrorist threats, the concern lies in the access these groups have to advanced weaponry, suggesting a larger issue that necessitates global intervention and prevention of illicit arms trade and diversion.
9. The responsibility to curb illicit arms trade was highlighted, urging collective action by all states, the Security Council, and the UN to prevent the unauthorized transfer and trade of arms that could potentially fall into the hands of extremist groups.
10. The speech at the UN underscored Pakistan's multifaceted concerns, including the regional arms imbalance, the impact of weapon supply on conflict resolution, and the need for international cooperation in preventing unauthorized access to sophisticated arms by non-state actors.
(With Agency Inputs)
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