He was talking to Afghan Foreign Minister Dr Zalmai Rassoul, who called on him here at the Prime Minister House to discuss matters of mutual interest.

The Prime Minister termed the recent visit of Salahuddin Rabbani, Chairman of the High Peace Council, to Islamabad successful. He said that the Council made important contributions and engaged positively with their Pakistani interlocutors.

Prime Minister Ashraf said that both Afghanistan and Pakistan faced a common challenge of terrorism and drug trafficking. He stressed that both the countries needed to work closely to confront these challenges.

The Prime Minister expressed the hope that the agreement between the two countries to hold an Ulema conference would contribute positively towards consolidating the relations between the two countries.

The Afghan Foreign Minister said that the visit of High Peace Council was successful and both the governments were now talking to find solutions. He said that time had come to show results.

Afghan Deputy Foreign Minister Jawed Ludin, Afghan Ambassador to Pakistan Mohammad Umer Daudzai, Minister for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar, Minister for Defence Syed Naveed Qamar and other senior officials were also present in the meeting.