FM Qureshi’s CNN remarks: a storm in a teacup?
Pakistani leaders bear a monumental responsibility to fully prepare for counter-narratives before media engagements
Pakistani government officials countered the narrative on May 21, 2021, alleging that our foreign minister uttered anti-Semitic sentiments on a televised CNN interview.
The media’s storm in a teacup surfaced on May 20 after Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told CNN anchor Bianna Golodryga that Israel is losing “the media war, despite their connections”. The anchor promptly demanded of the Pakistani statesmen to elaborate upon those “connections” to which FM Qureshi replied, “They [Israel] are very influential people… I mean, they control the media.” The CNN anchor fired back with bullet-precision: “I would call that an anti-Semitic remark.”
The scale of Israeli influence
The scale of Israeli influence
This writer is a senior foreign affairs correspondent at The Express Tribune
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s interview to the CNN made international headlines and has been the subject of debate as to whether his remarks of “deep pockets” and “Israeli influence” over media are anti-Semitic or not. Most Pakistanis backed Qureshi while others felt the Pakistani foreign minister could have shot back at the anchor with a more powerful argument about why his remarks were not anti-Semitic. As this debate goes on, the question still remains: does Israel indeed exercise influence over the western media? To find an answer to this question, we, perhaps, need to analyse the US-Israeli relationship because that would give us a clear picture about the extent of influence Tel Aviv has over the world’s superpower.
Qureshi meets US lawmakers, discusses bilateral relations
FM appreciates Congressional Caucus for improving relations between Pakistan, US
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. PHOTO: RADIO PAKISTAN
ISLAMABAD:
On the sidelines of his UN-related engagements in New York, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi interacted with US lawmakers, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, chairperson of the Congressional Pakistan Caucus, and Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, on Sunday.
During his interaction with Congresswoman Lee, Foreign Minister Qureshi underscored that Pakistan has always valued its partnership with the United States.
Since the US Congress is one of the pillars of the American political system, the foreign minister appreciated the Congressional Caucus for its role within the US Congress in further improving bilateral relations between Pakistan and the United States.
Pakistan reiterates desire to forge broad-based partnership with US Qureshi tells Congressmen peace in Afghanistan is a shared responsibility of Afghan parties and international stakeholders Pakistan can never make a deal on Kashmir
May 23, 2021
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Saturday reaffirmed Pakistan’s desire for a broad-based partnership with the United States that would advance the two countries’ shared interests in the bilateral and regional spheres.
The foreign minister held an interaction with the leadership of US House of Representatives’ Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific and Non-Proliferation, on the sidelines of his UN-related engagements in New York, Foreign Office said in a press release.
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