Pashtuns on both sides cannot be separated by visas, passports: Afghan Consul General

PESHAWAR - During a recent video interview with Pashto news website Pashtun Times, Afghanistan's Consul General in Peshawar, Dr. Abdullah Waheed Poyan, said that Pashtuns on both sides of the Durand Line could not be kept apart by the stringent visa and passport requirements put in place last month by the Pakistani administration.

"We [Pashtuns] are brothers, with one language, and even though certain difficulties may have arisen [in the relationship between Pashtuns on both sides], we cannot be kept apart through visa and passport requirements," he said.

He also criticized the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police and administration for the recent crackdown on registered and non-registered Afghan refugees, which gained momentum after fighting broke out at the Torkham border between border forces on both sides.

Explaining the processes in place for authorized travel to Afghanistan, the Afghan envoy assured Pakistanis of easy and fast-track processing of their visa applications, especially those Pashtuns with family members and businesses on the other side of the border.

He also said that the maximum time for processing visa applications for travel to Afghanistan was 40 days.