Pakistan on Thursday voiced deep concern over the continued captivity of Pakistani nationals aboard the hijacked cargo vessel MT Honour 25, while also strongly rejecting recent Indian statements on Kashmir, water resources, and strategic capabilities during the weekly Foreign Office briefing.
Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi confirmed that Pakistani crew members have remained in the custody of Somali pirates for over 50 days despite sustained diplomatic engagement with Somali authorities and the shipowner. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar recently spoke with Somalia’s Foreign Minister Abdisalam Ali to press for the safe release and repatriation of the hostages. Andrabi said Dar underscored the urgency of ensuring the well-being of all hostages, including nationals from Pakistan, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar, while urging improved living conditions aboard the vessel. The spokesperson said Pakistan had intensified diplomatic outreach, including meetings between Pakistani officials and Somali authorities in Mogadishu, while further inter-ministerial consultations are scheduled in Islamabad next week to streamline rescue efforts.
On regional developments, Andrabi reiterated Pakistan’s support for diplomacy and ceasefire efforts amid ongoing hostilities in the region, stressing that Islamabad remained committed to mediation and facilitation despite shrinking diplomatic space. “Pakistan remains on the path of peace and diplomacy,” he said, adding that recent engagements involving Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar reflected continued efforts to keep communication channels open with regional stakeholders, including Tehran, Ankara, and Doha.Andrabi said that Pakistan’s channels of communication were open and remained open while adding that, “mediator ought to maintain confidentiality of the exchanges. Whatever was transpired to Tehran, and whatever message we received from Tehran was sent across forthwith”.
The Foreign Office also rejected recent remarks by India’s Ministry of External Affairs regarding Kashmir, accusing New Delhi of attempting to divert attention from alleged human rights violations in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K).Andrabi said there could be no false equivalence between IIOJ&K and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, reiterating Pakistan’s longstanding demand for a UN-supervised plebiscite in the disputed territory while putting it out that the situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir was being addressed with the issues arising within the democratic and constitutional framework.
Responding to the latest Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) assessment on India’s nuclear arsenal, Pakistan expressed concern over what it described as India’s “continued vertical proliferation” and expansion of strategic capabilities, including canisterised missile systems, sea-based deterrence, and long-range ballistic missiles. “These developments complicate crisis stability and carry implications beyond South Asia,” Andrabi warned, while emphasizing that Pakistan did not seek an arms race but would continue taking measures necessary for maintaining strategic stability.
The spokesperson also reacted sharply to recent remarks attributed to India’s Water Minister regarding future river flows to Pakistan, warning that any attempt to block or curtail water resources would violate international obligations and threaten regional peace. “Water cannot be used as a political weapon,” Andrabi said, adding that Pakistan would defend its water rights through all available diplomatic and legal means.
While confirming Pakistan’s airstrikes on Afghanistan, the spokesperson added that this was carried out in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in North Waziristan on the 2nd June and police station in Banu on the 9th of May, “We carried out attack along the Pakistan-Afghan border in areas and hideouts of safe havens of terrorist mastermind and the planners belonging to Fitnah Al Khwarij”, adding that, “We acted on credible intelligence with selective targeting of camps and hideouts. The targeting was with precision and accuracy. We continue to undertake military strikes with precision and accuracy, eliminating the terrorist hideouts.”