Need to embrace Afghans

The policy of shying and shunning Afghanistan is toiling. It’s high time for the international community to embrace the dispensation in Kabul, and help it stand on its feet. Formal recognition can wait for some time, but abandoning a war-devastated nation of 40 million would be disastrous. Weeks after the Taliban took over the reins of affairs, the regime is longing for not only acknowledgement but also aid and assistance. It is ironic that as a knee-jerk reaction, its foreign assets were frozen, and now the day-to-day business of the state too is in a mess. This has pushed the country to the brink of crisis in terms of socio-economic distress, as the new government struggles to make ends meet.

This is why Pakistan, since day one, has been voicing for reason while dealing with the landlocked country. It is incumbent upon the world community to closely address the needs and necessities of Afghans, as they rebuild from the scratch after four decades of death and destruction. Ignoring them by virtue of a narrow-minded approach is heart-wrenching. Prime Minister Imran Khan, National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf and Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi have consistently pushed the envelope, time and again, reiterating the urgency to stand up for the humanitarian cause in Afghanistan, and not to abandon it once again.

Qureshi’s minced no words in telling US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in New York — as they met on the sidelines of United Nations General Assembly — that Washington should not repeat the mistake of abandoning Afghanistan, as it would be detrimental to peace and security of the region. The point made by Pakistan cannot be dismissed as Qureshi told his counterpart that isolating Afghanistan at this critical stage will allow disgruntled elements to destabilise the country, and the terror remnants might stage a comeback. What is needed is a grand consensus on the part of major powers to stand beside Afghanistan. China and Russia have rightly called for unfreezing Afghan foreign reserves, and the US should nod to it. Enabling the Taliban to address the UN General Assembly will be a prompt confidence building measure.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 25^th, 2021.

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