Qureshi arrives in China for ministerial moot on Afghanistan

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi arrived in the Chinese city of Huangshan on Tuesday at the invitation of State Councilor and Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi to participate in the third meeting of ‘Foreign Ministers of Neighbouring Countries of Afghanistan’.

The three-day conference, which began on Tuesday, will continue until Thursday. At the meeting, Qureshi would be accompanied by Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood and Special Representative on Afghanistan Muhammad Sadiq.

At the Huangshan International Airport, the foreign minister was received by senior officials of the Chinese government and Pakistan’s Ambassador Moeen ul Haq. During his stay in China, the foreign minister would interact with his counterparts from the participating countries.

Qureshi had said in a statement on Monday that he would hold meetings with his counterparts from the Central Asian countries, besides he was expected to meet foreign ministers of Russia and Iran. During these meetings, he said, regional issues, peace and stability would be discussed.

Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang, who had just concluded his trips to Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and Nepal, told the media in Beijing that China welcomed Pakistan’s participation in his country new development pattern.

He mentioned that he had reached important new consensus with the Pakistani government and military leadership on deepening strategic cooperation between the two countries under the current international and regional circumstances.

“The two countries vowed to safeguard international equity and justice, as well as agreed to practice true multilateralism, firmly oppose acts of bullying by powers, and resist the resurgence of the Cold War mentality,” he was quoted by CGTN as saying.

The senior Chinese diplomat said that his trip to South Asia came at a time when the spillover effect of the Ukraine crisis had been constantly spreading and the world peace and development were facing new challenges.

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“China deeply feels the strong desire of South Asian countries to maintain the hard-won peace and tranquillity in the region and accelerate post-pandemic economic recovery as well as their hope to strengthen strategic communication and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation with China.”

During his trip to Pakistan, Wang attended the session of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Council of Foreign Ministers (OIC-CFM). About Afghanistan, Wang said, his visit meant to send a clear signal that the Afghan issue remained important on the current international peace and security agenda.

About his India visit, Wang noted that the two countries were partners rather than rivals, and should help each other succeed instead of undercutting each other. And on his visit to Nepal, Wang said the two sides agreed to speed up the construction of the Belt and Road.

Noting the spillover of the Russia-Ukraine conflict had been rippling across the globe, Wang said there was the general consensus among relevant countries that disputes should be settled peacefully through dialogue, and neither war nor sanctions were good ways.