April 26, 2021
Pakistan’s envoy Mohammad Sadiq, led a delegation from Islamabad, and arrived in Kabul for discussions with Afghan leaders on peace, security and related matters on Sunday.
Afghan National Security Adviser Hamdullah Mohib confirmed the upcoming visit of a Pakistani delegation to Kabul for discussing relations between the two countries and current issues, before the arrival of the delegation.
On Friday, the foreign ministers from Afghanistan, Turkey and Pakistan met in Istanbul in an move to revive the Afghan peace process days after a key UN-led conference was postponed due to non-participation by the Taliban.
Turkey’s foreign ministry issued a statement saying that in their meeting, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammad Haneef Atmar, and Pakistan Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi restated their commitment to support a peaceful, sovereign, independent, democratic and unified Afghanistan.
Moreover, the three ministers understood that viable peace can be achieved only through a comprehensive Afghan-led and Afghan-owned political process that aims for a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire along with a complete political settlement to culminate the conflict in Afghanistan.
They further highlighted their support for the Afghanistan peace process and the continuing Afghanistan peace negotiations in Doha for the attainment of a just and durable political settlement. Along with appreciating the efforts of Turkey, Qatar and the UN to hold a high-level conference in İstanbul meant to give a push to the ongoing Afghanistan Peace talks.
They also recalled that the Istanbul Conference had been postponed after broad discussions with all concerned parties with a view to re-scheduling the conference when conditions for making significant progress would be more favorable, therefore called on all parties, in particular, the Taliban to restate their commitment for achieving an inclusive negotiated settlement leading to enduring peace in Afghanistan looked-for by the Afghan people, the region and the international community.
While condemning the ongoing high level of violence in Afghanistan, the ministers regretted the high number of civilian fatalities and particularly condemned attacks targeting civil service employees, civil society activists, human rights defenders, journalists and media workers.
They also put emphasis on the pressing need for an instant ceasefire both to end the prevailing high level of violence and to deliver a conducive atmosphere for the peace talks.
They reiterated the importance of the Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process (HoA-IP) as a significant platform that adds to regional stability in fields ranging from political and security cooperation to economic integration.
The ministers restated their common determination to fight terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
While acknowledging the role of the regional and bordering countries, in particular, Pakistan and Iran in hosting Afghan refugees for more than four decades, they called for generating encouraging conditions in Afghanistan for their voluntary, safe, dignified, expeditious and sustainable return through a well-resourced proposal.
With the Taliban sources stating that the top leadership from the group is still engaged in discussions about participation at the Turkey summit; however, the sources also reveal that the Taliban leaders have not managed to reach a final conclusion about whether to attend the conference that has been scheduled for after Eid-al-Fitr so far.
© Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) and Afghan Studies Center (ASC), Islamabad.
