United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon Tuesday said drones should be used only for collection of information in accordance with international laws.
Islamabad, Aug 13/Nationalturk- In a good news for Pakistan which has been opposing US drone strikes in its tribal region, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon Tuesday said drones should be used only for collection of information in accordance with international laws.
“Every effort should be made to avoid civilian casualties in the use of armed drones,” Moon said while addressing inauguration ceremony of International Centre for Peace and Stability at National University of Science and Technology in Islamabad here today.
He said he has often and consistently maintained that use of armed drones like any other weapon should be subject to long-standing international law, including international humanitarian law.
“This is a very clear position of the United Nations. Every effort should be made to avoid mistakes and civilian casualties,” he said.
United States has been conducting regular drone strikes in Pakistan’s tribal region, which Pakistan views as violation of its sovereignty and integrity. Washington views the strikes as an important tool in the fight against Al Qaeda and Taliban militants and insists the drone strikes are legal.
UN chief arrived in Islamabad on a two-day visit. He will meet Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for talks
‘Pakistan immensely contributing in UN peace missions’
Pakistan’s official news agency, APP reported that Moon while referring to UN peacekeeping mission said history of UN’s peacekeeping efforts would be incomplete without mentioning Pakistan’s immense contribution for peace and security.
“Pakistan’s engagement with UN has been crucial in carrying out wider peacekeeping across the globe,” he said and lauded services of over 8000 Pakistani soldiers, who are deployed as UN peacekeepers in Liberia, Western Sahara, Ivory Coast and many other countries.
He said the sacrifices of 136 Pakistani peacekeepers could not be ignored, who lost their lives during the country’s 50-year affiliation with the UN peacekeeping.
Moon said an incident in one part of the world could affect the rest of the globe and termed the training of troops as a strategic investment in peacekeeping.
“The military and political efforts and the use of technology was helping the UN troops in coping with difficult situations better,” he said.
The UN chief stressed that security and development should go hand in hand. “Besides peace, the people across the world needed food, education, energy, employment, human rights and human dignity”.
“The sustainability of peace was more important,” he said adding there was a need to overcome the short-term problems of security by strengthening the long-term foundations of peace-building.
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Faiz Ahmad / NationalTurk Pakistan News
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