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Arab News
18-04-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Pakistan's deputy PM to raise security concerns during daylong visit to Afghanistan on Saturday
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar is set to visit Kabul on Saturday for high-level talks, with security issues topping the agenda amid ongoing tensions between the two neighbors. The visit comes against the backdrop of a surge in militant attacks in Pakistan, which Islamabad attributes to armed groups operating from Afghan territory. Pakistan has frequently accused the Taliban-led government in Kabul of providing safe havens to these militants and 'facilitating' cross-border attacks, a claim Afghanistan denies. 'At the invitation of interim Afghan Foreign Minister, Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, will lead a high-level delegation to Kabul tomorrow,' the foreign office announced in a statement. 'The talks will cover entire gamut of Pak-Afghan relationship, focusing on ways and means to deepen cooperation in all areas of mutual interests, including security, trade, connectivity and people-to-people ties,' it added. The foreign office said Dar will meet Afghan Acting Prime Minister Mullah Muhammad Hassan Akhund, Acting Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and hold delegation-level talks with Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. Earlier in the day, Pakistan's foreign office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan emphasized the importance of the visit. 'The key concern remains centered on security,' he said during his weekly media briefing. 'The question of sanctuaries and terrorism has been raised multiple times [with Afghanistan], and we will keep raising it.' 'We want to find an amicable solution to this challenge,' he added. Since late 2023, Pakistan has initiated the deportation of undocumented immigrants, predominantly Afghan nationals, citing security concerns. The move has strained relations further, with Afghan authorities raising concerns over the expulsions. Despite these tensions, both countries have resumed diplomatic efforts to improve ties. A Pakistani delegation recently visited Kabul for a Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) meeting, while an Afghan delegation traveled to Islamabad to discuss trade and connectivity initiatives. Dar's visit is seen as a continuation of these efforts, aiming to address mutual concerns and explore avenues for cooperation between the two neighboring countries.
Express Tribune
18-04-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Dar to visit Kabul, Dhaka
Listen to article Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will travel to Kabul on April 19 (tomorrow) and Dhaka on April 22 on important foreign visits seen as a major breakthrough in the country's bilateral relations with these two countries, sources said on Thursday. The sources confirmed to The Express Tribune that Dar would visit Kabul on Saturday (tomorrow), the first visit by any Pakistani foreign minister in three years. Last time any Pakistani top diplomat travelled to the Afghan capital was in October 2021 months after the Taliban returned to power in Kabul. The upcoming visit of Dar to the neighbouring country signals a thaw in the bilateral relations that remained strained for the last couple of years primarily due to Kabul's reluctance to address Pakistan's security concerns. But this week a Pakistani delegation led by Special envoy on Afghanistan Muhammad Sadiq Khan visited Kabul for a crucial meeting of the Joint Coordination Committee (JCC). The meeting, the first in 15 months, managed to pave the way for an apparent breakthrough. It was for the first time, the sources said, the Afghan Taliban government had shown willingness and seriousness to address Pakistan's concerns over the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The development has allowed Pakistan to finally decide that it was time the foreign minister travelled to the Afghan capital in order to advance the momentum. The positive momentum in the relations was confirmed by Ambassador Sadiq on Thursday. "In a welcome development, high-level bilateral engagements with Afghanistan have resumed after a long hiatus," he wrote on X, a day after visiting Kabul. "Pakistan, in consultation with Afghanistan, will now work to activate trilateral and multilateral mechanisms including: the Immediate Neighbours+Russia Format, Pakistan-China Trilateral, Pakistan-Uzbekistan Trilateral, and Pakistan-Iran Trilateral," he added. "In this context, I held a virtual meeting today with Mr. Yue Xiaoyong, China's Special Representative for Afghanistan, to explore reviving the trilateral process with Afghanistan and follow up on the previous agenda. The proposal will be discussed with the Afghan government shortly," he said. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Dar will travel to Dhaka on April 22 in a significant development highlighting growing ties between the two countries. This was the first visit by any Pakistani foreign minister to Bangladesh since 2012. Ahead of the crucial visit, Pakistan and Bangladesh on Thursday resumed crucial political consultations after a long gap of 15 years. "The 6th round of Foreign Secretary Level Consultations took place at Dhaka today after a hiatus of 15 years," read a statement issued here by the Foreign Office.
Arab News
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Pakistan and Afghanistan resume high-level talks amid strained ties over militancy, deportations
PESHAWAR: Senior Pakistani and Afghan officials resumed high-level talks on Wednesday, as a delegation from Islamabad arrived in Kabul for a session of the Joint Coordination Committee (JCC), a bilateral platform aimed at fostering cross-border cooperation on a range of issues, amid ongoing tensions over militancy and refugee deportations. The last JCC meeting between the two countries was held in January last year soon after the launch of a nationwide deportation drive targeting undocumented Afghan nationals in Pakistan. The campaign followed a sharp rise in militant violence in 2023, prompting Pakistani authorities to accuse the administration in Kabul of 'facilitating' cross-border attacks by armed groups operating from Afghan soil, and to claim that some Afghan citizens in Pakistan were involved. The Afghan Taliban authorities rejected both allegations, saying Pakistan's security challenges were an internal matter. Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) and Pakistan's Special Representative for Afghanistan, Ambassador Mohammad Sadiq, who is leading his country's delegation, confirmed the meeting in a social media post following his arrival in Kabul. 'SAPM/Pakistan's Special Representative for Afghanistan arrived at Kabul at the head of a delegation to attend the JCC meeting,' he said in a social media post. 'JCC meeting is being held after a long gap.' SAPM/Pakistan's Special Representative for Afghanistan arrived at Kabul at the head of a delegation to attend the JCC meeting. JCC meeting is being held after a long gap. — Mohammad Sadiq (@AmbassadorSadiq) April 16, 2025 Separately, Sadiq's office announced that a delegation led by Afghan Acting Minister for Industry and Commerce Noor Uddin Azizi would arrive in Pakistan today, comprising representatives from Afghanistan's economic, foreign affairs, refugee, and civil aviation authorities, along with private sector stakeholders. Officials from both sides have not disclosed the full agenda of the JCC, but their interactions in the two countries are expected to focus on economic cooperation, transit trade, refugee issues, border management and security challenges during the day.
