Afghan Acting Foreign Minister Haneef Atmar and Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi agreed to work for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and start of intra-Afghan talks as they spoke via phone on Monday.
Atmar said that working together on counter-terrorism through Afghanistan-Pakistan Action for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) mechanisms, building a better understanding of each other’s concerns, intelligence sharing from detained IS-KP leader Aslam Farooqi and his accomplices “for mutual security and security cooperation in our shared region constitute our top priorities.”
“On economic front, we agreed to work on a joint economic cooperation framework, continued cooperation to facilitate bilateral trade and transit during COVID-19 crisis and reviewing feasibility of railway extension into Spin Boldak and Torkham,” Atmar said on Twitter.
He said that they also discussed cooperation in the fight against coronavirus and thanked Pakistan for extending emergency support to Afghan refugees and support for bilateral trade and transit.
Pakistan foreign ministry in a statement said that the US-Taliban peace agreement provides a “historic opportunity” for the Afghan leadership to jointly work for the ultimate aim of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan.
“Pakistan will continue to support a peaceful, stable, united, democratic and prosperous Afghanistan, at peace with itself and with its neighbours,” the statement quoted Qureshi as telling Atmar.
“In view of COVID-19, Pakistan has taken a number of steps, at the request of the government of Afghanistan, to assist in movement of Afghan nationals and cargo trucks and containers,” Qureshi said hoping that Afghanistan would be able to control spread of COVID-19 effectively.
Qureshi also hoped that the next session of APAPPS would be held soon, which would help further strengthen bilateral cooperation in various fields.
