Kashmir in focus as Imran leaves for UNGA

 Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday left for New York on a week-long visit to attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session during which he is to make Kashmir the focus of his address and interactions.

He will share Pakistan's perspective and position on the Jammu and Kashmir issue and on its current human rights and related dimensions, a Foreign Office statement said.

Imran Khan is being accompanied by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Advisor on Finance Hafeez Shaikh and Special Assistant on Overseas Pakistanis Zulfikar Abbas Bukhari.

Imran Khan will hold several bilateral meetings with his counterparts from various nations and participate in high-level UN summits on climate change, sustainable development, universal health coverage and financing for development.

He will also attend and speak at high-level side events co-hosted by Pakistan and Turkey on countering hate speech and on environmental protection and poverty alleviation, co-hosted by Malaysia and Pakistan. A trilateral summit meeting of Pakistan, Malaysia and Turkey will be held on the General Assembly sidelines.

He will interact with a cross-section of international media outlets and hold meetings with editorial boards, the Foreign Office spokesperson said.

He will also avail the opportunity to articulate Pakistan's perspective on some key contemporary issues, especially the centrality of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.

Following is his schedule for the week:

September 22: He will meet Zalmay Khalilzad, US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation

September 23: Imran Khan will meet US President Donald Trump, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Xi and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte

September 24: He will attend a reception hosted by the UN Secretary General AntAnio Guterres

September 24: The premier will attend a reception to be held by US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump

September 25: He will visit the UN headquarters

September 26: He will attend a finance meeting at the UN headquarters

September 27: Imran Khan will address the UN General Assembly and discuss the issue of Kashmir

He is scheduled to meet his counterparts from New Zealand, Egypt, Ethiopia and Turkey during the week.IANS