Pakistan has once again urged the Indian government to end the communication blackout in occupied Jammu and Kashmir in view of the threat posed by coronavirus.

In her opening statement at the weekly news briefing in Islamabad on Thursday, Foreign Office Spokesperson Aisha Farooqui expressed deep concerns over the continued communication blackout in the occupied territory. She said this is depriving the people of the region of critical information and supplies of critical medical items needed to effectively contain COVID-19 pandemic. She demanded that the medical teams and supplies be allowed to reach the people of occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

The spokesperson said that Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi during his interaction with the SAARC counterparts in recent days reaffirmed Pakistan's commitment to the SAARC process. She said Pakistan has proposed a video conference of SAARC health ministers at an early date to coordinate efforts to stem the coronavirus in the region.

The spokesperson said it is utmost endeavor of the government and our missions abroad to ensure the safety and early return of our nationals stranded in different parts of the world. She said our missions are actively in contact with the local authorities and helping the Pakistani nationals with food, medicines and accommodation.

She pointed out that the government in recent days operated special flights to repatriate the stranded Pakistanis from Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Doha.

Answering a question, the Spokesperson said China’s assistance to Pakistan to fight Coronavirus includes 12,000 test kits, 300,000 masks, 10,000 protective suits and four million dollars to build a hospital. 

She said Xinjiang government has also provided 50,000 masks each to Islamabad Capital Territory as well as Sindh government.

The Spokesperson said that a considerable amount of donation from private sources from China is also arriving, whereas Alibaba Foundation has donated 50,000 test kits and 500,000 face masks as well.

She said the United States has also announced one million dollars in assistance for Pakistan in dealing with Covid-19 situation.

Zahid/Akram/Asmaa/Karrar