Senior UN Official Postpones Visit To Pakistan

The incoming president of the United Nations General Assembly has announced that he is postponing a scheduled visit to Pakistan “due to some technical flight problems."

Turkish diplomat Volkan Bozkir was elected president of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly last month and was scheduled to arrive in Islamabad on July 26.

But in a Twitter post, he said the visit to Pakistan's capital would have to wait.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi tweeted in response to Bozkir that “I look forward to welcoming you to Pakistan soon for a constructive and fruitful visit.

In announcing the visit on July 25, Qureshi had said he hoped to discuss a range of issues with Bozkir, including the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, which is split between Pakistan and neighboring India and claimed by both in its entirety. The two sides often exchange fire in Kashmir, causing troop and civilian casualties.

Pakistan’s military on July 26 said it had shot down a small Indian drone that flew 200 meters into Pakistani-administered Kashmir. It was the the 10th such downing of an Indian drone this year. In a statement, the military released photos of the drone downed near the Pandu border village.

Pakistan and India have fought two of their three wars over the disputed region since gaining independence from British rule in 1947.

Based on reporting by AP