Pakistani official visiting Belarus, Kazakhstan over NSG membership

Islamabad: A top Pakistani official on Tuesday began a five-day visit to Belarus and Kazakhstan for their support for Islamabad's membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), officials said.

Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs, Syed Tariq Fatemi, is visiting as the special envoy of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif from August 23 to 27, Xinhua news agency reported.

The NSG is a group of nuclear supplier countries that contribute to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of two sets of guidelines for nuclear exports and nuclear-related exports.

Fatemi will carry letters from Sharif addressed to President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus and President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan.

In his letters, Sharif 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, Fatemi will call on President Lukashenko and also hold meetings with Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei, Deputy Foreign Minister Valentin Rybakov and Minister of Industry Vitali Vovk.

In Kazakhstan, Fatemi would meet Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov and Deputy Foreign Minister Yerzhan M. Ashikbayev.