United Nation, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Munir Akram, asserted at a United Nations Security Council debate that sustainable peace cannot be achieved in the presence of disputes like those in Palestine and Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

According to the Kashmir Media Service, Ambassador Akram spoke during the Security Council’s debate on promoting sustainable peace through common development. He supported the UN Peacebuilding Commission’s efforts in resolving conflict situations through development but stressed that development alone cannot bring peace where peoples are oppressed by foreign occupation and denied self-determination.

In his address, Ambassador Akram highlighted the importance of implementing the Political Declaration of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Summit held last September. He advocated for the Security Council to endorse these pledges as binding obligations, emphasizing the need to build inclusive and peaceful societies that leave no one behind.

Ambassador Akram’s remarks underscored the notion that development efforts must be accompanied by the resolution of long-standing disputes, particularly in regions like Palestine and Kashmir, where occupation and denial of self-determination prevail.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who opened the debate, also emphasized that secure peace is intertwined with inclusive and sustainable development that leaves no one behind. He stated that advancing peace and sustainable, inclusive development must go hand-in-hand.

This debate at the United Nations highlighted the complex interplay between development and peace, especially in regions affected by prolonged disputes and occupation.