Foreign Minister Qureshi leaves for China on three-day visit

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi left for China on Monday on a three-day visit, on the invitation of State Councilor and Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi, to attend the third meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Neighbouring Countries of Afghanistan.

According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the summit will begin today and go on till March 31. The minister will also interact with his counterparts from participating countries, the statement added.

The ministry highlighted that Pakistan had initiated the Neighbouring Countries format in September 2021, “with a view to evolving a regional approach on the situation in Afghanistan”.

Pakistan had hosted the first meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Neighbouring Countries on September 8, 2021.

“Pakistan fully supports a regional approach on Afghanistan for promoting durable peace and stability in the region,” the ministry said in its statement.It further maintained that Pakistan will continue to support the international community’s efforts to advance the shared objectives of a “peaceful, stable, sovereign, prosperous and connected Afghanistan”.

Prior to departing for his China visit, FM Qureshi said that Afghanistan must not be seen through a regional prism, but as a “shared and collective responsibility”.

“Instability in Afghanistan will have negative consequences for the entire world,” he said in his address at a seminar on ‘Perspectives on the evolving situation in Afghanistan’ organised by the Centre for Afghanistan, Middle East & Africa (CAMEA) of the Institute of Strategic Studies.

The foreign minister said that the emergence of new conflicts did not mean that the world can afford to forget old ones, adding that the wounds of 40 years of war and bloodshed in Afghanistan will take a long time to heal.

“Failure is not an option. If the world community fails Afghanistan yet again, it will result in a fresh influx of refugees, enhanced space for terrorism, and a rise in drug trafficking,” he added.