ISLAMABAD – National Security Advisor (NSA) Moeed Yusuf will lead a delegation to Afghanistan amid prevailing confusion over border fencing.
The decision was taken in a meeting of the Afghanistan Inter-Ministerial Coordination Cell (AICC), presided over by National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser of Pakistan.
“A senior delegation of Pakistani officials, headed by the NSA, is scheduled to visit Afghanistan soon for further engagement with the Afghan government on all assistance-related prospects,” the statement said.
The government did not reveal the schedule of the visit but reports claimed that it would take place from anuary 17-18.
Meanwhile, Asad Qaiser urged the world to provide assistance to the people of Afghanistan in their time of need. He said that peace and stability in Afghanistan imperative not only to the Afghan people but also for the region.
On Jan 4, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi revealed that officials were engaging with Afghanistan’s Taliban leadership through diplomatic channels to resolve the issue..
Speaking at a presser in Islamabad, he said Islamabad was determined to protect its interests and continue fencing the border with Afghanistan.
His statements came after recent Taliban soldiers aimed at preventing Pakistan from building the barrier, the latest such incident over the weekend when the Afghan side dismantled a portion of the fence.
Qureshi said ‘we are not silent and we have installed the fence and, God willing, this effort will continue”. Adding that, “Afghanistan is our friendly neighbor and we are engaged with them, as some confusions have emerged, and we shall be able to resolve them through diplomatic channels.”
On Jan 5, the spokesman for the Pakistan Army has said that work under the western border management regime will be completed in the stipulated period.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, ISPR Director General Major General Babar Iftikhar said that 94 percent of work on the fence along the Pak-Afghan border has been completed. He said that 71 percent of the work on the fence along the Pak-Iran border has been done so far.
The ISPR DG emphasized the importance of fencing on the Pak-Afghan border, saying that it was important for the security of people on both sides of the border and regulation of trade. “It is not aimed at dividing the people but securing them,” he said.
The border management system with Afghanistan will be made more effective with the passage of time, he added.
Pakistan Army vows to make border management system with Afghanistan more effective
