Pakistan has no plans to cut diplomatic ties with Qatar: FO
Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif Seeing off Emir of Qatar H.H. Sheikh Tamim bin Hammad Al-Thani at Noor Khan Airbase, Rawalpindi on 24th March, 2015.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has no immediaten plans to cut diplomatic ties with Qatar, Foreign Office spokesperson said on Monday.
The country “has no such plans,” the spokesperson, Nafees Zakaria, said, following Monday’s surprise severing of ties with Qatar by Islamabad’s key ally, Saudi Arabia, and three other Middle East nations.
“At the moment there is nothing on Qatar issue, (we) will issue a statement if some development takes place,” Zakaria said. Pakistan, which has a significant Shia population, has in recent years been caught between the feud between its Sunni ally, Saudi Arabia, and Shia majority neighbour Iran.
Saudi, Bahrain, Egypt and UAE cut ties with Qatar
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates announced on Monday they were severing diplomatic ties with Qatar, as they accused the Gulf state of supporting terrorism.
Saudi news agency SPA said Riyadh cut diplomatic ties and closed borders with its neighbour to “protect its national security from the dangers of terrorism and extremism”.