Intra-Afghan negotiations this week: Mansoor Ahmad new ambassador to Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's newly-appointed Ambassador to Afghanistan Mansoor Ahmad Khan is set to resume his responsibilities this week at a critical juncture when the intra-Afghan negotiations are about to begin.

Mansoor Ahmad Khan, a veteran diplomat, has served on important diplomatic assignments, including as Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the UN and other international organisations based in Austria, and also served at the embassies of Pakistan in Harare, Kabul, and New Delhi.

Ambassador Khan had also served on important position at the headquarters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs including in Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey Division. He played an important role in the process of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG) involving China, Pakistan, the US and Afghanistan, besides involving in the process of launching the Afghanistan Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS).

The ambassador-designate to Afghanistan, according to a statement, called on President Dr Arif Alvi before leaving for Kabul. Talking to him, President Alvi said that Pakistan attached special importance to its relations with Afghanistan and was making sincere efforts to promote peace and stability in Afghanistan.

The president said peaceful and stable Afghanistan was not only in the interest of the two neighbouring countries but of the entire region. The president said Pakistan and Afghanistan shared a common culture and religion and relations between the two countries needed to be further expanded.

He urged the ambassador-designate to Afghanistan to work for strengthening economic, political and public relations between the two neighbouring countries. According to a statement of the Foreign Office, the newly-appointed ambassador to Afghanistan also called on Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and held discussions on various issues including Pakistan-Afghanistan relations and the Afghan peace process.

The Foreign Minister, while congratulating Ambassador Khan hoped that the appointment of an experienced and professional diplomat such as him would help improve bilateral ties between the two neighbourly countries. He emphasised that peace in Afghanistan was essential for peace and stability in the entire region.

The Foreign Minister gave special instructions to the newly-appointed ambassador regarding professional matters and foreign policy priorities, adding that Pakistan was facing several challenges at internal and external fronts. Ambassador Khan's appointment comes at a critical time when the intra-Afghan negotiations are likely to begin this week aimed at ending the conflict in Afghanistan and deliberate on the future political set up in Afghanistan.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020