Maiden visit: Army chief to visit Kabul today

General Raheel is expected to reassure Afghan leadership of Pakistan’s goodwill

ISLAMABAD:

Army Chief General Raheel Sharif will travel to Afghanistan on Thursday, making it the first high-profile visit from Islamabad since the formation of unity government in that country.

According to a statement issued by the military’s media wing, Pakistan will offer a “new partnership agreement” to Afghanistan during General Raheel Sharif’s visit.

General Raheel during his maiden trip will hold talks with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, Chief Executive Officer Dr Abdullah Abdullah as well as other senior officials, said Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Asim Saleem Bajwa on Wednesday.

During the day-long trip, which comes ahead of President Ashraf Ghani’s visit to Islamabad, the Army chief is expected to assure the Afghan leadership that Pakistan is ready to open a new chapter in its relationship.

An official said, “We are ready to work with the new Afghan government. The two neighbours can bury the past and enter into a new partnership agreement.”

Relations between the two sides have been tense over the past few months and marked by suspicion due to the growing distrust.

While Afghanistan accuses Pakistan of supporting Afghan insurgents, Islamabad also points fingers at Kabul for doing little to dismantle alleged terrorist sanctuaries of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Pakistan has repeatedly denied allegations of double play and insisted that the ongoing military offensive in North Waziristan Agency (NWA) was targeting all militants groups including the Haqqani network.

However, Kabul is not willing to accept such a claim and believes that Pakistan’s security establishment is still reluctant to act against certain groups which may play a dominant role once the US-led Afghan forces leave the region by the end of this year.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 6^th, 2014.