After meeting Bilawal, German FM tests positive for Covid-19

German Foreign Minister (FM) Annalena Baerbock tested positive for Covid-19, her ministry confirmed on Tuesday, reports Reuters.

Earlier, Baerbock met her Pakistani counterpart Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari in Islamabad. She has also cancelled all further dates of the trip, which also included stops in Greece and Turkey.

Responding to the news, FM Bilawal wished Baerbock a quick recovery. He tweeted, “Building on our excellent talks today, I look forward to our continued engagement and future interactions to further solidify Pakistan and Germany partnership.”

Baerbock reached Islamabad today (Tuesday) on a two-day visit.

Baerbock and Bilawal held a joint presser in the capital. It has been reported that Pakistan will inaugurate its Consulate General in Munich soon.

‘We support the work of the UN and their stance on Kashmir’: FM Baerbock

During the presser, Bilawal said, “If India fails to condemn the comments, then it’s a reflection that it’s not a secular India but rather a Hindu-superiority India. We would want to engage with India but with a rationale.”

Talking about the Kashmir issue, Baerbock said, “The foundation of human rights is indivisible and this counts for every region in the world. This also counts for Kashmir, this counts for women’s rights. This counts for minority rights and religious rights Therefore, we support the work of the UN and their stance on Kashmir to ensure that all human rights are being guaranteed.”

“We believe that constructive approaches and measures from both sides are the only way forward to improve the relationships between India and Pakistan. The bilateral agreement along the line of control last year was a positive step”, she added.

‘Pakistan had been Germany’s closest and most reliable partner‘: FM Baerbock

About the Afghan situation, the German FM said, “It is not the mistake of the people that the Taliban overthrew the government and since then have tightened their grip on Afghan society,” she said, promising that Germany would continue to provide humanitarian aid and support people who need it, especially women and girls.

The diplomat highlighted that Pakistan had been Germany’s “closest and most reliable partner” in that regard, revealing that under this close cooperation between the two countries, 14,000 Afghans, who were at risk in the country, could travel to Germany via Pakistan and were able to start a new life in safety and without fear.

‘Pakistan does not want to be dragged in conflict’: FM Bilawal

Bilawal also highlighted that Pakistan was playing an outside role in mitigating the economic crisis in Afghanistan. “This is the face of Pakistan. A modern Muslim country”, he said.

While talking about the Ukraine crisis, Bilawal maintained that Pakistan “does not want to be dragged in conflict particularly given that we have just experienced decade after decade of conflict in Afghanistan”.