DUBAI:  Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar has said that Pakistan had been a strong voice and a proactive advocate for climate finance for developing countries that was fully acknowledged and accepted by the developed world in the United Nations’ 28th Conference of Parties (COP 28).

The prime minister said Loss and Damage Fund was advocated by Pakistan in COP27 to assist the developing countries in facing the climate challenges in terms of mitigation and risk reduction.

In an interview to Sky News Arabia here on the sidelines of COP28, PM Kakar said operationalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund was a testament that developed countries had morally accepted the argument that world must support those countries that were not responsible for the climate damage.

“Pakistan has always been advocating that the countries who have not contributed to the carbon emissions but remained one of the worst affected by the climate disaster must be compensated in terms of mitigation, climate adaptation and receiving climate finance to address all those challenges,” he added.

He said the operationalisation of Loss and Damage Fund by announcement of US$30 billion by UAE was a good start in the right direction. Initially, he said the funding should be utilised through multi-lateral organisation like the World Bank to swiftly start the implementation process.

Talking about the Israeli atrocities in Gaza, the prime minister said Pakistan along with Saudi Arabia and other countries had been on the forefront on the platform of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) demanding immediate stopping of senseless violence and aggression against the Palestinians and creation of humanitarian corridor.

Prime Minister Kakar said Pakistan was cognisant of its obligations to the refugees whom the country had hosted for the last 50 years. However, it was our national duty to rationalise and regulate the movement of more than a million undocumented and illegal aliens, he added.

PM Kakar said Kashmir issue remained unresolved for the last seven decades. “It is an integral part of Pakistan and it needs to be resolved according to the UNSC resolutions,” he said, adding that Pakistan desired peace and resolution of the Kashmir issue, however, these feelings must be reciprocated by the Indian authorities.

Published in The Daily National Courier, December, 04 2023

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