Islamabad:
The preliminary round of the additional secretary level mechanism between the foreign ministries in Pakistan and Afghanistan was held in Islamabad on Monday, with the Pakistani side calling for “concrete acts” against terrorist groups operating from Afghan Earth.
The new mechanism was established after an understanding reached under Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister’s visit to Kabul on April 19, according to a foreign office statement.
The Pakistani delegation was led by additional secretary (Afghanistan & West Asia) Ambassador Syed Ali Asad Gillani, while the Afghan side was led by Mufti Noor Ahmad Noor, Director General of the First Political Department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Discussions span central areas of bilateral interest, including trade, transit cooperation, security and regional connection.
Both sides recognized terrorism as a serious threat to regional peace and security.
The Pakistani delegation emphasized the urgent nature of decisive action against terrorist equipment based in Afghanistan and said such groups undermine Pakistan’s security and hinder a wider regional development.
While Kabul has recently taken some steps to tackle Islamabad’s concerns, Pakistan maintains that more concrete efforts are required to neutralize the threat of these groups.
The meeting came in front of the planned visit by the Afghan temporary Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to Islamabad.
In parallel, the two delegations also discussed improving trade and transit cooperation.
They underwent progress with measures announced during the April visit, including the removal of a 10% treatment fee, the supply of insurance guarantees, reduced scanning and investigation and operationalization of a track-and-tracking system for Afghan transit trading.
The two sides emphasized the importance of regional connection as a driving force for sustainable growth and shared wealth. In this context, they emphasized the strategic significance of the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan railway and agreed to work for early completion of its framework agreement.
Discussions also covered the repatriation of Afghan citizens.
The Pakistani delegation presented an overview of the efforts to facilitate documented travel from Afghanistan and noted the issue of over 500,000 visas since January 2024 across categories, including medical, tourism, business and education.
Both parties agreed to cooperate to strengthen the legal cross -border movement.
