A high-level Afghan delegation led by the acting Afghan Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi is currently on a 4-day official trip to Pakistan. Afghan delegation comprises diverse ministries including the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Foreign Affairs, and Transport, and is scheduled to have multiple inter ministries engagements with their Pakistani counterparts to boost ministries level cooperation between the two brotherly nations. At the same time, the Afghan acting Foreign Minister will participate in the 5th China-Pakistan-Afghanistan Trilateral Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue along with his Pakistani and Chinese Counterparts on May 6, in Islamabad. According to the official press release of the Pakistan Foreign Office, during the ongoing visit, the two sides will review the entire spectrum of bilateral relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan in the political, economic, trade, connectivity, peace and security, education, and other domains of bilateral interest.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are two brotherly nations that are linked by diverse and Comprehensive bonds ranging from religion to history, trade, and economy to culture and tourism. Meanwhile, massive migration and refuge from Afghanistan due to persistent political unrest and turmoil had transformed had cemented this decadeslong bond between the two countries. Historically, the people of Pakistan have extreme sympathy and commiseration for their Afghan brethren, and Pakistani leadership actively works at the UN and other global forums to conceive a global consensus for constructive engagement with the Afghan interim government to pave the way for durable peace, political stability and economic revival in war-hit Afghanistan. Afghanistan sits as a key geographical trade and transit route between South and Central Asia. The mountainous region is blessed with billions of dollars of untapped natural reserves that could change the fate of Afghans if peace and stability prevail in war-hit Afghanistan. Hence, sustainable peace in the neighboring nation will not only lead to a safe and dignified return of millions of Afghan refugees but will also embolden the prospects for regional connectivity, enhanced trade, and cooperation in the region and beyond.
The current visit by Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister comes at a time when Pakistan is witnessing a sharp uptick in terrorist attacks by the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the bilateral relations between the two neighbors suffered a brief setback over the issue of terrorism allegedly stems out of Afghanistan. The Pakistani authorities had urged Kabul to eliminate terrorist safe havens and take action against the banned terror outfits camped and operate out of Afghanistan. However, the Taliban rulers denied these accusations and no equally accepted solution to the issue could not be conceived by both neighbors so far. Meanwhile, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan yet not get ceremonial recognition from a single state in the world and faces total diplomatic isolation after seizing control in August 2021. The Western nations and the global community are still not ready to deal with the interim Afghan rulers who did not stand by their obligations under the Doha agreement in respect of political inclusiveness, human, women, and religious rights along with ensuring that Afghan land could be used by terrorist groups against any nation in post-US Afghanistan. The current scenario presents a gloomy picture regarding the future of the Afghan nation which is currently embattled with severe economic and humanitarian crises, risks of renewed violence, and finding no pathway to get out of the persistent violence and instability in the country.
Despite getting a cold shoulder from Afghan interim authorities against the banned terror outfits, Pakistan is still engaged at global, regional, and bilateral levels to create conditions that reduce the sufferings of the people of Afghanistan and promote fraternity and brotherhood between the two nations. To that end, Pakistan has recently approached the UN to facilitate the Afghan acting Foreign Minister’s participation in the current China-Pakistan-Afghanistan Trilateral Dialogue. Hopefully, the three neighboring nations would deliberate on mutual issues and prospects for optimum trilateral cooperation to grasp maximum benefits from joint efforts, resources, expertise, and collective wisdom. As, the destiny of the people of the region lies in peaceful co-existence, joint work, and cooperation.
