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India reiterates support for Afghan peace process
Abdullah Abdullah, Chairman of the National Reconciliation Council met with Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Friday in Delhi to discuss the Afghan peace process, bilateral ties, and regional support for peace efforts.
In a Twitter post on Friday, Abdullah said: “As always pleased to meet HE S. Jaishankar, the External Affairs Minister of India.”
“We exchanged views on the Afghan Peace Process, bilateral relations, and regional support for peace efforts,” Abdullah tweeted.
Jaishankar has also reassured Abdullah of India’s full support for peace in Afghanistan.
As always pleased to meet HE @DrSJaishankar, the External Affairs Minister of India. We exchanged views on the #AfghanPeaceProcess, bilateral relations, & regional support for peace efforts. He assured me of India’s full support for peace in Afghanistan. pic.twitter.com/6VgT5DNRnz
— Dr. Abdullah Abdullah (@DrabdullahCE) October 9, 2020
He stated that “peace in Afghanistan means peace in the region” and India would continue its assistance to Afghanistan by supporting the Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace efforts.
Meanwhile, Abdullah stated that peace in Afghanistan is in favor of the regional countries.
Abdullah, who is currently on a five-day official visit to India, has met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday and briefed him on the ongoing talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban delegations in Doha.
The Prime Minister reiterated India’s commitment towards sustainable peace and prosperity in Afghanistan and welcomed efforts towards a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire in Afghanistan, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.
“National Security Advisor Shri Ajit Doval called on Dr. Abdullah Abdullah on October 7 and discussed the Afghan peace process and related issues, including increased levels of violence across Afghanistan and peace and security in the region,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, speaking about the future of Afghanistan at the defense think tank “Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA)” in Dehli on Thursday, Abdullah stated “We need better relations with all countries. It is not our policy to decide the policies that other countries pursue each other, but we believe that peace in Afghanistan is in everyone’s interest.”
Abdullah said mistakes had been made in the past, even by Afghanistan’s international partners but that there were lessons to be learned through this.
He also stated that he hopes there has been a change in the Taliban’s attitude and said he was optimistic about this but added that only time will tell as to who is committed to the peace process.
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Girls’ education is a ‘vital issue’ for Afghanistan: Karzai
Former president Hamid Karzai said in a meeting with Iran’s ambassador and special representative, Hassan Kazemi Qomi, that education of girls was a “vital issue” for Afghanistan.
Karzai said he appreciated Iran’s cooperation and its standing with the Afghan people, especially Iran’s contributions to education in Afghanistan.
During the meeting, Karzai said peace and stability in the region are in the interest of all regional countries.
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Uzbekistan’s humanitarian aid arrives in Balkh
A shipment of humanitarian aid from Uzbekistan was handed over on Thursday to the local officials of Balkh province in the trade port of Hairatan.
Local authorities said the aid, which includes flour, oil, wheat, sugar and meat, has been handed over by Uzbekistan’s Surkhandarya governor to the governor of Balkh.
The governor of Surkhandarya stated the purpose of sending this aid was to support the people of Afghanistan and stressed the need for the development of good relations between the two countries.
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Afghanistan’s problems caused more damage to Pakistan than 3 wars with India: Durrani
Islamabad’s special envoy for Afghanistan Asif Durrani said on Wednesday that Pakistan has suffered more due to Afghanistan’s internal situation than Pakistan has suffered in three wars with India in terms of blood spilt and finances drained.
Durrani said at a one-day International Conference titled “Pakistan in the Emerging Geopolitical Landscape”, which was organized by the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI) and the German Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), that over 80,000 Pakistanis died in the two decades of the War on Terror and that his country was still counting its dead and injured.
“After the withdrawal of NATO forces, it was hoped that peace in Afghanistan would bring peace to the region. However, such expectations were short-lived,” he said.
He also stated that attacks by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militant group on Pakistan’s border areas increased by 65 percent, while suicide attacks increased by 500 percent.
“The TTP’s enhanced attacks on Pakistan while using Afghan soil have been a serious concern for Pakistan. Another worrying aspect is the participation of Afghan nationals in these attacks,” he said.
Durrani also said Pakistan had suffered geopolitically since the Soviet Union invaded the neighboring country.
“The post-9/11 world order has negatively impacted Pakistan. Apart from losing 80,000 citizens’ lives, including 8,000 law enforcement agency personnel, the country’s economic opportunity cost is estimated at $150 billion,” Durrani said.
Talking about the future outlook for Pakistan in the regional context, Durrani said that while “our eastern neighbor is likely to continue with its anti-Pakistan pursuits, the western border poses an avoidable irritant in the short to medium term.”
However, he said Pakistan can overcome its difficulties with Afghanistan, including the TTP challenge.
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