Afghan ambassador visits UNHCR repatriation center in Peshawar

Closure of Pak-Afghan border is not a solution, said Dr Omar Zakhilwal

PESHAWAR: Afghanistan is ready and willing to help Pakistan resolve all issues through mutual consultations but will not support closure of the Pak-Afghan border because restrictions and sanctions are not solutions, said Dr Omar Zakhilwal, the Afghan ambassador to Pakistan.

The diplomat visited the UNHCR Voluntary Repatriation Centre in Chamkani, Peshawar on Tuesday to meet returning Afghan refugees and to check on the repatriation process at the centre.

Speaking to reporters, Zakhilwal said Afghanistan and Pakistan are facing similar problems with terrorism and the scourge can be eliminated if both countries begin to trust each other and work together against it.



“In the 21st century, sealing borders is not the solution to problems,” said the ambassador. He added both countries should remove all barriers to cooperation and search for solutions through mutual consultations.

Zakhiwal said 380,000 Afghan refugees had returned last year and the country had made arrangements to receive and resettle them as well as all others returning. He appreciated the repatriation centre’s role in helping Afghan refugees return home.

The diplomat declined to comment on the death sentence announced by Pakistan for Indian spy Kulbushan Jadhav, saying the matter was between India and Pakistan.

UNHCR External Relations Associate Samad Khan told The Express Tribune that as of March 31, some 1.41 million Afghan refugees had remained in Pakistan.



Repatriation resumed on April 3 after a break of four months because of the Afghan winter. So far this year, 594 families have returned to Afghanistan, said Khan.

The UNHCR official further said that the agency initially provided $400 per person to returning families, but that has been reduced to $200 due to shortage of global funds.