Bilawal Bhutto to lead peace delegation abroad

Islamabad: Close on  the heels of India’s decision to send an MPs’ peace delegation to different countries, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has asked former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari to present the country’s “case for peace” on foreign capitals.

In another example of imitating India after facing humiliation in a four-day military escalation from May 7 to 10 during Operation Sindoor, Pakistan has asked Bhutto to present its case on a global stage.

Announcing the same, Bhutto said on X that he was contacted by Shehbaz Sharif, who asked him to lead a delegation.

“I was contacted earlier today by Prime Minister @CMShehbaz, who requested that I lead a delegation to present Pakistan’s case for peace on the international stage. I am honoured to accept this responsibility and remain committed to serving Pakistan in these challenging times,” he posted on X.

This comes as the Indian government have selected 7 MPs to lead respective delegations to assigned countries and present India’s evidence and stance on the zero-tolerance policy against terrorism and the Pahalgam terror attack, which led to Operation Sindoor.

The seven Indian delegations comprising parliamentarians, political leaders and former diplomats, including Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi, are set to travel to key capitals in North America, Europe and West Asia.

However, India’s External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar has already made it clear that India is willing to hold talks with Pakistan only on the issue of terrorism and the Indus Waters Treaty will remain in abeyance until cross-border terrorism backed by Islamabad is “irrevocably stopped”.

The only issue related to Jammu and Kashmir that New Delhi is willing to discuss with Islamabad is the vacation of the parts of the region illegally occupied by Pakistan, EAM Jaishankar said on Thursday.

On May 7, India launched Operation Sindoor and carried out a series of precision strikes on terrorist infrastructure at nine locations in territories controlled by Pakistan. This triggered four days of intense armed confrontation between the two sides, using drones, missiles and long-range weapons, till they reached an understanding on halting firing and military actions on May 10.

The last time Pakistan copied India was not too long ago, when their Prime Minister visited a military base in Sialkot, copy-pasting the move from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who went to Adampur airbase in Punjab and interacted with air warriors and jawans.

He also addressed them with the S-400 air defence system in the background — which Pakistan had claimed to have shot down.

Shehbaz Sharif too visited the Sialkot base and addressed the Pakistani army soldiers, claiming a sham “victory” against India in the brief four-day air battle.

Pakistan’s mimicking of India comes as the Narendra Modi government in India formed teams to visit different parts of the world.

Each delegation would comprise leaders from various political parties, including the Opposition, and seasoned diplomats.

–IANS