Brotherly ties: Kabul strikes a friendly note

Afghan minister says peace, stability in interest of both countries

KABUL: Afghanistan respects and intends to protect Pakistan and its people’s interests, said Afghan Foreign Affairs Minister Salahuddin Rabbani on Wednesday.

Talking to a Pakistani delegation, headed by Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, at the Kabul Foreign Office, Rabbani said: “We consider Pakistan our second homeland, where we grew up and were educated.”

Discussing peace in the region, the minister said: “Afghanistan and Pakistan are in dire need of peace and stability, which are possible through mutual understanding and consultation.”

He said peace and stability are in the interest of both the countries. “The region can become progressive and prosperous whenever peace returns here.” Rabbani advised the governments and people of both countries to adopt a joint strategy not only for peace but also for benefiting from the region’s potential.

Khattak thanked him and assured him of unswerving support in dealing with violence and militancy in the region. He informed Rabbani that post-18th amendment, all four Pakistani provinces have been empowered to increase trade and social relations with the neighbouring countries.

Meeting on prisoners

A high-level meeting between Pakistan and Afghanistan will be held in Islamabad on April 30 and May 1, an Afghan officer informed the participants of a meeting between Khattak and Afghan Minister for Refugees and Repatriation Syed Hussain Alemi Balkhi.

The two-day meeting will discuss ways and means of releasing prisoners jailed for petty crimes, as well as extradition of militants serving their terms in prisons. The Afghan officer was responding to a point raised by Parliamentary Secretary Ishtiaq Urmar, who said 106 people from scattered areas of K-P are imprisoned in various jails of Afghanistan.

Parliamentary Secretary for Industries Munaem Khan mentioned names of a few residents of the province’s Shangla district imprisoned in Afghanistan. According to the officers present in the Balkhi-Khattak meeting, the upcoming meeting in Islamabad is scheduled in accordance with understanding developed between the two countries on the eve of Afghan President Dr Ashraf Ghani’s visit to Pakistan.

Balkhi claimed that Afghan nationals are being terrorised and imprisoned on petty charges in Pakistan. On the other hand, K-P ministers and MPs complained that Pakistani nationals are being imprisoned on petty charges in Afghanistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 16^th, 2015.