In the trilateral meeting, Foreign Ministers of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and China had an in-depth exchange of views on the Afghan peace and reconciliation process and counter-terrorism and security cooperation. The concerns were also expressed over the early withdrawal of NATO forces from Afghanistan. Although the Doha agreement remained successful, there are still question marks over peace and stability in Afghanistan. A few days ago, Afghan leadership alleged Pakistan of having ties with the Afghan Taliban. Pakistan strongly condemned such irresponsible statements and baseless allegations. Pakistan is a neighboring country of Afghanistan and peace and stability there is in the best interest of Islamabad. Moreover, the role of Pakistan in convincing the Afghan Taliban to come to the negotiation table with the United States is being acknowledged by the world. Pakistan convinced Afghan Taliban to participate in the Istanbul conference. The conference in Turkey to be jointly hosted by Turkey, Qatar and the UN has been postponed twice due to the Taliban’s refusal to join it. The Afghan authorities requested the Pakistani side to use its influence over the Taliban in a bid to ensure they end the boycott of the peace process. We should expect a positive outcome of the efforts for a peaceful and stable Afghanistan.
After the withdrawal of NATO troops, the situation in Afghanistan will be crucial as the Kabul government seems unable to control it. However, the intra-Afghan dialogue must continue to find out a way of power-sharing in the war-torn country. There are concerns that Afghanistan’s security forces would not be able to secure their people and country.
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