Second round of Pakistan-Afghanistan talks begins in Istanbul
- Doha talks, aimed at reducing tensions, were earlier declared successful
The Foreign Office has said that the second round of talks between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban authorities is currently underway in Istanbul, Türkiye, aimed at advancing the points agreed upon during the Doha ceasefire agreement earlier this month, Aaj News reported.
During the weekly press briefing on Friday, Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi stated that the second phase of talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan was a continuation of the Doha dialogue, where all issues discussed earlier would be further deliberated.
He said that as a result of the Doha talks, a ceasefire was established between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban, following which no major terrorist attacks had been reported from the Afghan border.
He added that a document was signed during the Doha negotiations; whether or not the Afghan Taliban considered it a formal agreement made no difference.
The spokesperson explained that due to the recent security situation, the Pakistan-Afghanistan border crossings had been temporarily closed, as saving the life of an ordinary Pakistani was more important than trade or food supply.
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“Pakistan has always acted sincerely towards Afghanistan; however, the situation changed after terrorist attacks from Afghan soil,” he said, adding that Pakistan expected Afghanistan to take verifiable action to prevent such attacks in the future.
Andrabi further said that Pakistan was taking threats from India seriously and was fully prepared to respond to any possible Indian misadventure in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
The FO spokesperson also noted that Pakistan was closely monitoring Israeli violations in the region and related developments.
It is worth mentioning that the Doha talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan, aimed at reducing tensions, were earlier declared successful. The Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs had confirmed that both countries had agreed to an immediate ceasefire.
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