Pak-Afghan talks make progress

Pakistan and Afghanistan held "good" discussions and made "some agreement" on co-operation in areas of counterterrorism, peace and reconciliation, refugees' repatriation and joint economic development. But the details of the two-day talks, which concluded on Saturday, and the specifics of the agreements signed between the two countries were not released to the media. The talks were held under the Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) held here at the Foreign Office.
The APAPPS is a joint action plan for cooperation in the areas of counterterrorism and reduction of violence, peace and reconciliation, refugees' repatriation and joint economic development.
The Pakistani side was led by Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua while Afghan Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai represented and led his country's delegation, but no joint statement or press release was issued at the conclusion.
However, the Foreign Office spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal, through a tweet described the talks as "good". "Two days of good discussions. Some agreements [were signed]. Further work (is) required," the spokesperson stated in a brief tweet. When approached, the spokesperson, however, refused to share any details with Business Recorder regarding the talks as well as the agreements.
Earlier, a high-level Pakistani delegation comprising senior civilian and military officials led by Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua visited Kabul on February 03, 2018 to hold discussions with their Afghan counterparts, led by Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai, on APAPPS.
The Foreign Office spokesperson, while speaking his weekly media briefing had said that the meeting was held in a "cordial environment" and both delegations made some progress on the APAPPS.
"There are still important areas to be discussed and agreed upon, and both sides remain committed to continuing their discussions to reach an agreement on the APAPPS," he added.
After the recent wave of terrorist attacks in Kabul, the Afghan government sent its intelligence chief Masoom Stanekzai and Interior Minister Wais Ahmad Barmak to Islamabad to share some "evidence" of terrorists' allegedly using Pakistan's soil against Afghanistan.
Pakistan, however, promised to investigate the information provided and also declared that a 'response' would also be conveyed to the Afghan government in a couple of weeks.