Latest news with #diplomaticrelations
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Afghanistan, Pakistan upgrade ties amid diplomatic thaw
Afghanistan welcomed the decision to upgrade ties with Pakistan to the ambassador's level, Kabul's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi's office said on Saturday. "This elevation in diplomatic representation between Afghanistan and Pakistan paves the way for enhanced bilateral cooperation in multiple domains," the Afghan Foreign Ministry posted on X. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan welcomes the decision of the Government of Pakistan to upgrade the level of its diplomatic mission in Kabul to that of an reciprocity, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan will elevate the... — Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Afghanistan (@MoFA_Afg) May 31, 2025 Relations between the two neighbors have long been strained over Islamabad's accusations that Kabul harbors Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), also known as the Pakistani Taliban. Pakistan's attempts to deport tens of thousands of Afghans have also contributed to bilateral tensions. On Friday, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar announced that the charge d'affaires in Kabul would be elevated to the rank of ambassador. He also said that their relations are "on [a] positive trajectory" since he visited Afghanistan in April. Pakistan-Afghanistan relations are on positive trajectory after my very productive visit to Kabul with Pakistan delegation on 19th April 2025. To maintain this momentum, I am pleased to announce the decision of the Government of Pakistan to upgrade the level of its Chargé… — Ishaq Dar (@MIshaqDar50) May 30, 2025 Later, Kabul announced that it would reciprocate the move. The decision came after Muttaqi met with Dar and their Chinese counterpart Wang Yi during a trilateral meeting in Beijing earlier this month. After their talks, Wang expressed Beijing's willingness "to continue to assist with improving Afghanistan-Pakistan ties." Muttaqi is due to visit Pakistan "in the coming days," ministry spokesman Zia Ahmad Takal told AFP news agency. Since Kabul fell to the Taliban in 2021, only a handful of countries have agreed to host Taliban government ambassadors. No country has officially recognized the administration. Edited by: Wesley Dockery
Al Jazeera
9 hours ago
- Business
- Al Jazeera
Afghanistan welcomes upgraded diplomatic ties with neighbouring Pakistan
Afghanistan has welcomed an upgrade in its diplomatic ties with Pakistan, signalling an easing of tensions between the South Asian neighbours. Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Friday said the charge d'affaires stationed in the Afghan capital, Kabul, would be elevated to the rank of ambassador, with Afghanistan's Taliban government later announcing its representative in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, would also be upgraded. A charge d'affaires serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador. 'This elevation in diplomatic representation between Afghanistan [and] Pakistan paves the way for enhanced bilateral cooperation in multiple domains,' the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted on X on Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is due to visit Pakistan 'in the coming days', the ministry spokesman, Zia Ahmad Takal, said. Only a handful of countries – including China – have agreed to host Taliban government ambassadors since their return to power in 2021, with no country yet formally recognising the administration. Pakistan is the fourth country to designate an ambassador to Kabul, after China, the United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan. Russia last month said it would also accredit a Taliban government ambassador, days after removing the group's 'terrorist' designation. For the past few months, relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have been rocky over security concerns and a campaign by Islamabad to expel tens of thousands of Afghan refugees. Islamabad says armed groups which launch attacks inside Pakistan use Afghan soil. Kabul denies the allegation, saying such violence is Pakistan's domestic problem to handle. However, Foreign Minister Dar on Friday said relations between the two nations have improved since he visited Kabul last month. Last week, he also met Muttaqi and their Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, during a trilateral meeting in Beijing. Following that meeting, China said it will 'continue to assist with improving Afghanistan-Pakistan ties'.
Arab News
11 hours ago
- General
- Arab News
Afghanistan welcomes upgraded diplomatic ties with Pakistan
KABUL: Afghanistan has welcomed the decision to upgrade diplomatic relations with Pakistan, where the Taliban government's foreign minister is due to travel in the coming days, his office said on move signals easing tensions between the neighboring countries, as relations between the Taliban authorities and Pakistan – already rocky – have cooled in recent months, fueled by security concerns and a campaign by Islamabad to expel tens of thousands of top diplomat on Friday said the charge d'affaires stationed in Kabul would be elevated to the rank of ambassador, with Kabul later announcing its representative in Islamabad would also be upgraded.'This elevation in diplomatic representation between Afghanistan & Pakistan paves the way for enhanced bilateral cooperation in multiple domains,' the Aghan foreign ministry said on Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is due to visit Pakistan 'in the coming days,' ministry spokesman Zia Ahmad Takal met with Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar in May in Beijing as part of a trilateral meeting with their Chinese counterpart Wang afterwards announced Kabul and Islamabad's intention to exchange ambassadors and expressed Beijing's willingness 'to continue to assist with improving Afghanistan-Pakistan ties.'Dar hailed the 'positive trajectory' of Pakistan-Afghanistan relations on Friday, saying the upgrading of their representatives would 'promote further exchanges between two fraternal countries.'Only a handful of countries – including China – have agreed to host Taliban government ambassadors since their return to power in 2021, with no country yet formally recognizing the last month said it would also accredit a Taliban government ambassador, days after removing the group's 'terrorist' designation.
Arab News
12 hours ago
- Business
- Arab News
Kabul, Islamabad to appoint envoys in apparent thaw in relations
ISLAMABAD: Afghanistan's foreign ministry said on Saturday it would appoint an ambassador to Pakistan after Islamabad announced its decision to upgrade diplomatic relations by appointing an envoy to Kabul, in an apparent warming of ties between the two neighbors. The development comes amid prolonged tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, with Islamabad repeatedly accusing the Afghan Taliban administration of 'facilitating' cross-border attacks by militant groups such as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA). Kabul has denied the allegations and insisted that Pakistan's security challenges are its internal issue. Relations further deteriorated after Islamabad launched in late 2023 a nationwide deportation drive targeting undocumented foreigners, the majority of whom are Afghan nationals. Pakistani authorities maintained that some of them were linked to a spate of militant attacks in the country. Both countries have sought to improve their strained relations in recent months and Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar in April led a delegation to Kabul and later participated in trilateral talks with Chinese and Afghan foreign ministers in Beijing earlier this month. 'This elevation in diplomatic representation between Afghanistan & Pakistan paves the way for enhanced bilateral cooperation in multiple domains,' the Afghan foreign ministry said in a statement. It came hours after Dar said on X that Pakistan-Afghanistan relations were on a positive trajectory after his 'very productive visit' to Kabul last month. 'I am confident this step would further contribute toward enhanced engagement, deepen Pak-Afghan cooperation in economic, security, CT [counterterrorism] & trade areas and promote further exchanges between two fraternal countries,' he said, referring to Pakistan's appointment of an ambassador to Kabul. Both Pakistan and Afghanistan have yet to announce names of their respective envoys. Earlier this month, Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to the expansion of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), part of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), to Afghanistan after the recent trilateral meeting in Beijing, where Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said both Pakistan and Afghanistan had 'clearly expressed' a willingness to elevate their diplomatic ties. The BRI — China's multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure plan — aims to build land and maritime trade routes linking Asia with Africa and Europe. CPEC, considered the flagship of the initiative, includes over $60 billion in Chinese investments in Pakistan's energy, transport, and industrial sectors.
The Independent
a day ago
- Business
- The Independent
Pakistan announces it will send an ambassador to Afghanistan to upgrade diplomatic ties
Pakistan announced Friday that it is upgrading its diplomatic representation in neighboring Afghanistan from chargé d'affaires to ambassador, a move aimed at improving bilateral relations between the two neighbors. The announcement by Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar comes a week after he met with his Afghan counterpart, Amir Khan Muttaqi, alongside China's top diplomat during a trilateral meeting in Beijing. Hours later, Kabul welcomed the Pakistani decision, saying it will also reciprocate by upgrading ties with Pakistan to ambassador's level. In a statement, Hafiz Zia Ahmad Takal, a Taliban Foreign Ministry deputy spokesperson, said the elevation of the level of diplomatic relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan paves the way for the expansion of cooperation between the two countries in many areas. Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban government have embassies in each other's capitals but were being led by chargés d'affaires. Like the international community, Pakistan has not recognized the Afghan Taliban government. A chargés d'affaires serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador. In a statement, Dar during the day said relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have taken a positive turn since his visit to Kabul in April. 'To maintain this momentum, I am pleased to announce the decision of the Government of Pakistan to upgrade the level of its chargé d'affaires in Kabul to the level of ambassador,' he said. Dar expressed hope that the decision would strengthen economic cooperation, boost bilateral trade and enhance joint efforts to combat terrorism. Tensions between the two countries have long been strained over Pakistan's accusations that Kabul provides safe haven to Pakistani Taliban, who are known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP and are allies of the Afghan Taliban. TTP is a separate group and has been emboldened since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021.
