ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Pakistan and Afghanistan on Monday emphasized that effective border management was vital for promoting peace, countering terrorism and strengthening relations between the two countries.
It happened when a meeting was held between top officials of two countries in Islamabad on Monday for discussions on issues relating to the Torkham border and other matters pertaining to border management.
The Pakistan delegation was led by Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry whereas Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai led the Afghan delegation.
The talks between the two delegations were held in a cordial atmosphere marked by a mutual desire to amicably resolve border related issues.
Both sides decided to work in the spirit of good neighbourly relations and friendly cooperation between the two countries.
The two sides agreed that the ideas generated in today’s deliberations will be shared with the leadership and further discussed and refined during a meeting between the Adviser and the Afghan Foreign Minister on the sidelines of the forthcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Tashkent on June 23-24, 2016.
During the discussions, it was emphasized that there was a need for creating a suitable mechanism for consultation on border management issues. It was also emphasized that effective border management is vital for promoting peace, countering terrorism and strengthening relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
The Afghan Deputy Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai also paid a courtesy call on Adviser on Foreign Affairs with Afghan National Security Adviser Sartaj Aziz.
Earlier, the Afghan delegation arrived in Islamabad following a telephone conversation of Sartaj Aziz with Afghan National Security Adviser Hanif Atmar on June 15, 2016 to address the situation arising from recent events at the Torkham border crossing and to find a way forward on efforts for border management.
