Ishaq Dar Set to Visit UK from August 24 to 28

Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar is set to visit the UK from August 24 to 28, for official meetings with British government officials and representatives of the Pakistani community, the Foreign Office said.

The visit will include meetings with UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, FCDO Minister of State for Pakistan Stephen Doughty and other senior government officials. During the visit, He will also hold talks with the IMO Secretary-General over the Pakistani crew members being held hostage aboard the MT Honour 25 oil tanker by Somali pirates.

The tanker was hijacked near Somalia’s Puntland region on April 21. It was carrying 17 crew members, including 10 Pakistanis. Their families have stated rising distress in excess of their safety and the worsening conditions during their captivity. The Foreign Office said the government remains committed to securing the release of the Pakistani nationals.

During his UK trip, Dar is scheduled to meet Commonwealth Secretary-General Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, British parliamentarians and representatives of the British-Pakistani community.

His visit arises almost two months after the UK proclaimed an additional £8 million in funding to funding Pakistan in undertaking crime and banned migration. The subsidy will help reinforce border and visa systems, recover law enforcement and fighting human trafficking and people-smuggling networks. It will also maintenance the return of people who have no legal right to stay in the UK and community programmes aimed at addressing the causes of illegal migration.