Terrorist incidents: Pakistan’s concerns conveyed to Afghan FM: Qureshi

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has once again asked Afghanistan to ensure that its soil is not used by anyone against Pakistan for terrorism following the latest spate of terror incidents.

This was conveyed to the Afghan side by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi during his telephonic conversation with his Afghan counterpart Hanif Atmar on Wednesday in which other issues of mutual interests and bilateral relations also came under discussion.

In a statement, Foreign Minister Qureshi said that he had spoken to Afghan Foreign Minister Atmar, adding that besides bilateral relations, he also briefed him about the terrorist incidents in Quetta and Peshawar and Pakistan’s concerns. “I asked the Afghan Foreign Minister to ensure that Afghan soil is not used against Pakistan,” the Foreign Minister said. “The forces that want to create instability and chaos in Pakistan have once become active. These incidents have revealed their nefarious designs,” Qureshi said.

He said that Pakistan had achieved peace and stability after great difficulties. He also urged the entire nation to get united and fight this menace, adding that the federal and provincial governments need to make joint efforts to defeat the evil designs of the terrorist elements. “Certain forces are trying to damage the peaceful environment of the country. We have to keep an open eye on these elements,” Qureshi said, adding: “We value the national interest. We have never hesitated to negotiate, but the national interest must take precedence.”

Earlier, Foreign Office said that the two foreign ministers exchanged views on matters relating to Afghan peace process, bilateral relations, repatriation of Afghan refugees, and regional connectivity.

It stated that Foreign Minister reiterated that Pakistan supports a peaceful, united and stable Afghanistan.

It further stated that Qureshi underlined Pakistan’s positive contribution to Afghan peace process and expressed the hope that the Afghan leadership would seize this historic opportunity through Intra-Afghan Negotiations to establish lasting peace in Afghanistan by achieving an inclusive, broad-based and comprehensive political settlement.

He added that Pakistan will respect the decisions taken by the Afghan nation about their future through an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned process. He also underlined the need to guard against the role of ‘spoilers’ who did not wish to see return of peace and stability.

Qureshi welcomed the increasing high-level bilateral visits, including the recent visit of Speaker of Afghan Wolesi Jirga, Mir Rahman Rahmani, and the holding of Pakistan-Afghanistan Trade and Investment Forum in Islamabad. He also underlined the commitment to further deepen trade and economic ties between the two countries and efforts to enhance connectivity.

Highlighting the importance of a time-bound and well-resourced road map for the repatriation of Afghan refugees, he emphasized Pakistan’s commitment to safe and dignified return of Afghan refugees to their homeland.

The Foreign Minister commiserated over the loss of lives in the unfortunate incident at a stadium in Jalalabad where Afghan local authorities were managing visa applicants. He also highlighted the steps taken by Pakistan side to facilitate Afghans wishing to visit Pakistan. In this regard, the Foreign Minister highlighted that the new visa policy was aimed at further easing people-to-people contacts between the two countries.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020