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Top Pakistani official visits Belarus, Kazakhstan to seek NSG support

Xinhua, August 23, 2016 Adjust font size:

A top Pakistani official Tuesday started a five-day visit to Belarus and Kazakhstan to seek support for the country's move to seek membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), officials said Tuesday.

The Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Syed Tariq Fatemi, is undertaking the Aug. 23-27 visits as Special Envoy of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

"The objective of the visits is to seek the two friendly countries' support for Pakistan's membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)," the Foreign Ministry said.

The Nuclear Suppliers Group is a group of nuclear supplier countries that seek to contribute to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of two sets of guidelines for nuclear exports and nuclear-related exports, the NSG website says.

The special assistant will be carrying letters from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif addressed to President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus and President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan.

In his letters, the prime minister has underscored the need for the NSG to adopt a non-discriminatory approach on the question of the membership for non-NPT states in order to promote strategic stability in South Asia and strengthen the global non-proliferation regime, a Foreign Ministry statement said.

While in Belarus, the special assistant will call on President Lukashenko and will also hold meetings with Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei, Deputy Foreign Minister Valentin Rybakov and Minister of Industry Vitali Vovk.

In Kazakhstan, the special assistant's programme would include meetings with Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov and Deputy Foreign Minister Yerzhan M. Ashikbayev. Endit