Torkham border set to reopen today

Interior Minister Haqqani, Foreign Minister Muttaqi said to have played key role in resolving matter

KABUL/ISLAMABAD:

After over a week of its closure due to a skirmish between the Pakistan and Afghan security forces, the Torkham border is expected to reopen today (Friday), resuming its regular operations – transit trade and movement of people.

Afghanistan is a landlocked country and relies on a transit trade agreement with Pakistan to do business with the outside world.

Torkham Border Affairs In charge Asmatullah Yaqub on Thursday confirmed the development to The Express Tribune, saying that on Friday (today) at eight o'clock, the gate would “reopen as normal for transit trade and travellers".

The local authorities said the border had been closed for all sorts of communications for eight days due to the illegal construction in the border area, which they termed was against the international law.

Read more: FO calls for 'global attention' on US arms left in Afghanistan

On Sept 6, Pakistan and the Afghan forces engaged in gun battle over the construction of an “illegal” check post by the latter, which resulted in the closure of the Torkham border.

Sources said that Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani and Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi had a key role to play in the reopening of the crossing point between the two countries.

The sources said that the reopening of the Torkham border was conditioned by Islamabad with the withdrawal of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) from Chitral.

On Sept 6 – the same day the Torkham border was closed, at least four soldiers were martyred and 12 TTP terrorists killed in clashes in Chitral.

The Inter-Services Public Relations said a large group of “terrorists equipped with the latest weapons” attacked two military check posts in Chitral district in the northwestern province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, resulting in an “intense exchange of fire”.

The military’s media wing said the attacks were coordinated from the Kunar and Nuristan provinces of neighbouring Afghanistan and a combing operation was under way.

“Owing to heightened threat environment, Pakistan’s own posts were already on high alert,” it said, adding that the Taliban administration in Afghanistan is “expected to fulfil its obligations and deny the use of Afghan soil by terrorists for perpetuating acts of terrorism against Pakistan”.

The sources said after the intervention of the Kabul regime, the TTP had completely withdrawn from the border areas.

The sources said that Islamabad sought assurances that such attacks would not happen in the future after Kabul wasted billions of rupees on unsuccessful attempts to control the outlawed group.

Earlier in the day, the Foreign Office accused the interim Afghan government of misusing the transit trade agreement.

Also read: Pakistan accuses Afghanistan for 'misusing' transit trade facility

At her weekly news briefing, FO spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said Pakistan had concerns that the transit trade facility was being misused.

“We are concerned that the transit trade agreement between Pakistan and Afghanistan is being misused,” the spokesperson said. “It is important for our customs authorities to ensure that any border trade that takes place complies with the understandings and agreements that exist between Pakistan and Afghanistan and that such commercial activities do not contravene Pakistani laws.”

The main concern of Pakistan was that the goods that Afghanistan imported through transit trade ended up in Pakistan illegally.

“Our major concern is that sometimes the imports that are meant for Afghanistan are diverted back to Pakistan and the customs duties and taxes are not paid as they should be. So, there are certain concerns of our customs authorities that people are misusing the bilateral provisions that allow for trade with Afghanistan,” she explained.

The spokesperson, however, said the border closure was temporary and some development would take place in the coming days.