Pakistan will host the 48th Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM), in Islamabad, on 22-23 March 2022 after a hiatus of nearly 15 years), a statement by the Embassy of Pakistan said on Wednesday.
This Session will coincide with the 75th anniversary celebrations of Pakistan’s independence.
“Pakistan remains deeply committed to the eternal Islamic virtues of amity and brotherhood. Promoting solidarity and co-operation between members of the Islamic Ummah, is not only a foundational basis of our foreign policy, it is also an element of faith for us,” the Ambassador of Pakistan Sajid Bilal said.
The guiding principles of this vision were laid by the Father of the Nation, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who described Pakistan’s policy towards the Islamic States as one of abiding ‘friendship and goodwill’, according to the statement.
Over the years, Pakistan has remained true to these lofty ideals. Only two months after joining the UN (September 30, 1947), Pakistan voted against the UNGA Resolution 181 (November 29, 1947) on the partition of Palestine, as gross injustice to the Palestinian people.
The statement added that Pakistan was also at the forefront of decolonisation efforts at the UN, and is proud to have stood by our brothers and sisters in Asia and Africa in their own struggle against colonialism in the 1950s and the 1960s.
“As a founding member of the OIC, we believe that the best expression of solidifying Islamic solidarity is by further strengthening the Organisation as the representative voice of over 1.5 billion Muslims across the world,” the statement added.
Pakistan has a proud history of hosting major OIC events including Summits and Council of Foreign Minister (CFM) meetings. It hosted the 2nd OIC Summit in Lahore, in February 1974. An Extraordinary OIC Summit was held in Islamabad in 1997, on the occasion of Pakistan’s Golden Jubilee.
Pakistan has also hosted the OIC CFMs on four occasions – 2nd Session in December 1970, 11th Session in May 1980, 21st Session in April 1993 and the 34th Session in May 2007. The 1st and the 17th Extraordinary Sessions of the OIC CFM, were held in Islamabad, in January 1980 and December 2021, respectively.
During our CFM Chair, Pakistan will sincerely endavour to promote unity amongst Member States, advance the cause of justice for Islamic peoples, and to achieve the mutually reinforcing goals of prosperity and development for all OIC Member States. Ensuring full and complete recovery from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic also remains a key priority for Pakistan.
“The proposed theme of the 48th Session, “Partnering for Unity, Justice and Development” fully encapsulates these priorities. We will seek to build ‘partnership’ across the Islamic world, and build bridges of co-operation to address the myriad of challenges confronting the Ummah,” the statement said.
The Session will also provide an opportunity to take stock of, and review the decisions taken during the 17th Extraordinary Session, to alleviate the urgent humanitarian situation in Afghanistan.
“Egypt is an important country in the Muslim world and its contributions are widely acknowledged and appreciated. We look forward to Egypt’s participation at the highest level,” the statement said.
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