Pakistan gives UN General Assembly president high honor

By Islamuddin Sajid

ISLAMABAD (AA) - Pakistan on Thursday conferred its highest civilian award to visiting UN General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir.

At a ceremony at the President House in the capital Islamabad, President Arif Alvi conferred the Hilal-e-Pakistan on Bozkir.

Bozkir, a Turkish diplomat, arrived in Islamabad on late Wednesday for a three-day official visit on the invitation of Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

During their meeting, Alvi and Bozkir exchanged views on a wide range of issues, said a Pakistani presidency statement.

The Pakistani president expressed his country's “strong commitment to the central role of the UN in upholding multilateralism to foster peace, prosperity and harmony around the globe.”

The UN General Assembly president also met with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and discussed matters regarding regional and international peace and security, sustainable development and economic recovery efforts in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic, said a statement by the Prime Minister’s Office.

Khan lauded Bozkir’s role in convening the special meeting of the UN General Assembly on Palestine last week and stressed that following the announcement of a cease-fire, steps should be taken to revive the peace process and ensure a just and lasting solution in line with relevant UN resolutions and two-state vision.

Earlier, Bozkir also held delegation-level talks with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

"Welcome back to President #UNGA75 @volkan_bozkir. It is particularly heartening to host @volkan_bozkir today, following his instrumental role in convening a special meeting of the @UN General Assembly last week on #Palestine, in the wake of the deadlock in the UNSC," Qureshi tweeted.

The UN General Assembly chief also thanked Pakistani government for the “warm welcome” and said he had a “very fruitful meeting” with Qureshi and that they discussed major issues on the agenda of the UN and the UN General Assembly as well as latest regional developments.

"It is always a great pleasure to be in #Islamabad. I thank the government of Pakistan for the warm welcome to me and my team," he tweeted.

Bozkir, the first Turkish national to preside over the UN General Assembly, had previously visited Pakistan in August 2020.​​​​​​​