New Delhi, March 23 Peaceful relations between Pakistan and India can only be established based on equality, mutual respect, and the harmonious resolution of all disputes, a Pakistani envoy said here on Monday.
Addressing the Pakistan Day event, Saad Ahmad Warraich, Charge d'Affaires of Pakistan to India, raised the issue of Kashmir and called for a "just resolution" to it.
Pakistan Day was commemorated at the country's High Commission in New Delhi on Monday.
Warraich hoisted the Pakistani national flag during the ceremony held at the Chancery Lawns, according to a statement issued by the high commission.
He was quoted in the statement as saying that "peaceful relations between Pakistan and India can only be established based on equality, mutual respect, and the peaceful resolution of all disputes."
"A just resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, in accordance with relevant UN resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people, is essential for this," the envoy said.
India has maintained that it desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan, while insisting that the onus is on Islamabad to create an environment free of terror and hostility for such engagement.
New Delhi has also emphasized that the entire Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India, and that Pakistan has illegally occupied parts of the Union territory.
In his remarks, the Charge d'Affaires said that the Lahore Resolution of March 23, 1940, "served as a touchstone for the Muslims of the subcontinent to strive for a separate homeland."
He said that under the leadership of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, "this collective aspiration" found expression in the establishment of Pakistan within a short span of seven years.
Paying homage to the martyrs of the freedom movement, Warraich emphasized that their "exalted sacrifice serves as a living inspiration for the nation" to uphold the precious gift of freedom and to make tireless efforts for the progress and prosperity of the country.
The Charge d'Affaires underscored that the abiding lesson of history was that "only those nations were truly free who were strong enough to defend their freedom."
"The entire world is witness to Pakistan's unwavering resolve to preserve and protect its sovereignty and independence," he said without elaborating.
Warraich said, "Pakistan's established deterrence was not only a factor of stability in South Asia, but was also an assurance for regional peace."
Officers and staff of the High Commission along with their families attended the event.
Messages of the President, Prime Minister, and Deputy Prime Minister of Pakistan were read out on the occasion, the statement said.
