Pakistan Afghanistan take vital decision during highest level talks of civil military delegations
Shares
KABUL - High level security officials from Afghanistan and Pakistan held a meeting in Islamabad and agreed to resume efforts for peace negotiations in Afghanistan and to speed up the process of implementing the joint action plan for peace, officials said on Monday.
This comes a day after a high-level Afghan security delegation led by National Security Advisor Mohammad Hanif Atmar arrived in Pakistan where they held discussions with Pakistani officials on a number of key issues pertaining to Afghanistan’s security, the war on terrorism, mutual cooperation and regional issues.
According to officials at the National Security Council (NSC) the two countries also agreed to take specific steps regarding the implementation of the joint action plan for peace and for reducing the scale of threats.
“High level meetings were held with Pakistan’s national security advisor, army chief, the leadership of Pakistan security institutions, deputy minister of foreign affairs, head of operations, the economic advisor of Pakistan’s prime minister and other high level officials, the meetings were held in a cordial and conducive atmosphere,” the NSC said in a statement on Monday.
Meanwhile the Pakistan army said in a statement that military officials from the two countries have agreed to the resumption of peace talks.
“Pakistan and Afghanistan have expressed the resolve to work together to strengthen bilateral relations and improve the security situation in the region. This understanding was reached during a meeting between a high-level Afghan delegation and National Security Advisor Nasser Khan Janjua,” the Pakistani government said in a statement following the meeting.
“Before this similar trips had taken place, unfortunately they left no results and the situation in the country worsened,” said MP Akbar Stanekzai.
“It was decided to form more committees within the framework of this to conduct more discussions on the issue,” said the interior ministry’s spokesman Najib Danish.
“On the security front, the two sides agreed to take all necessary measures relating to the implementation of 66 items of commitments listed in the Joint Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity which forms the core component of a comprehensive framework for bilateral cooperation,” said the NSA’s office.
Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to draw up a plan in April following Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s trip to Kabul where he held talks with Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani.
