Afghan foreign minister to lead high-level delegation to Pakistan tomorrow: FO

The Foreign Office (FO) said on Thursday that Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mutaqqi would lead a “high-level delegation” to Pakistan from May 5 (tomorrow) to May 8.

In a statement issued today, the FO said: “Acting Afghan Foreign Minister, Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi is visiting Pakistan from May 5 to May 8 2023.

“He will lead a high-level delegation, which includes Acting Afghan Minister for Commerce and Industry Haji Nooruddin Azizi and senior officials from the Afghan Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Transport and Trade.”

During the visit, the statement said, the two sides would review the “entire spectrum of bilateral relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan” in the political, economic, trade, connectivity, peace and security, and education domains.

“Apart from holding bilateral meetings, the acting Afghan foreign minister will also participate in the 5th China-Pakistan-Afghanistan Trilateral Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue on May 6, 2023. State Councilor and Foreign Minister of the People’s Republic of China Qin Gang will also participate in the Trilateral Foreign Minister’s Dialogue,” the FO said.

Mutaqqi’s visit, it added, was a continuation of Pakistan’s “political engagement process” with Afghanistan, which also included Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar’s visit to Kabul on November 29, 2022, and the visit of a high-level delegation, led by Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, to the Afghan capital on Feb 22, 2023.

“Pakistan is desirous of a peaceful, prosperous, stable and connected Afghanistan and reiterates its commitment to pursue continuous and practical engagement with the interim Afghan government,” the FO added.

This will be Mutaqqi’s second visit to Pakistan since the Taliban took control of Kabul on August 15, 2021, with his last visit to Islamabad taking place in November of the same year.

The development was earlier announced by the Afghan foreign ministry as well. However, the date of the visit was not specified in the statement.

Earlier this week, a UN Security Council committee agreed to allow Muttaqi to travel to Pakistan from Afghanistan to meet with the foreign ministers of Pakistan and China, according to diplomats.

Muttaqi has long been subjected to a travel ban, asset freeze and arms embargo under Security Council sanctions.

According to a letter to the 15-member Security Council, Taliban sanctions committee, Pakistan’s UN mission had requested an exemption for Muttaqi, who was to travel between May 6-9 “for a meeting with the foreign ministers of Pakistan and China”. It had also said that Pakistan would cover all costs associated with Muttaqi’s trip.

Afghanistan sits as a key geographical trade and transit route between South and Central Asia and has billions of dollars of untapped mineral resources. The Taliban seized power in August 2021 as US-led forces withdrew after 20 years of war.

The Security Council committee allowed Muttaqi to travel to Uzbekistan last month for a meeting of the foreign ministers of neighbouring countries of Afghanistan to discuss urgent peace, security, and stability matters.

The Afghan foreign minister’s visit comes at a time when Pakistan is seeing an uptick in attacks by the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The country has expressed its desire for Kabul to take action against the banned outfit, which Pakistani officials say operates from Afghan territory. However, the Taliban government in Afghanistan denies these assertions.