KP govt’s initiative with Kabul: Foreign affairs federal govt’s domain, says FO

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office Sunday expressed its ignorance about the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government’s plan to send two delegations to Afghanistan for talks.

“Under the Constitution, foreign affairs are the federal government’s domain,” Foreign Office Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said while talking to The News.

Meanwhile, sources in the federal government told this reporter that a senior KP government official had made it public the other day that the federal government would be consulted after completing homework for consigning the delegations, indicating that the delegations would be dispatched after a go-ahead from the federal government.

It is understood that the federal government would study all aspects of the matter before giving its nod. It could include some of its experts/officials in the delegations. The federal government would also determine the talks parameters, the sources said.

Once the delegations are allowed to proceed ahead, the Pakistan mission in Kabul could be asked to facilitate them, the sources hinted.

It is believed that the KP government would not defy the SOPs in the matter, the sources added.