‘Peaceful Afghanistan vital part of Pak foreign policy’

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Afghanistan share strong geographic, cultural and religious ties, and building close cooperative relations with Afghanistan is high priority of Pakistan’s foreign policy which is a vital component of our vision for a “peaceful neighborhood”, Chairman Senate Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani said this on Tuesday while addressing the closing session of the two-day seminar “Pakistan Afghanistan Trade & Investment Forum” in Islamabad.

The USAID had organized this seminar to bring both the countries close and improve business and political ties.

He said that regional development and economic prosperity is dependent on connectivity, enhanced trade linages and better investment opportunities.

“It is now time to turn our bilateral and economic linkages into a strategic partnership for betterment and prosperity of our people and the region as well,” he said.

Sanjrani emphasized the need to raise current trade volume between the two countries to match immense economic cooperation potential, adding that CPEC also offers another golden opportunity to join hands for the wellbeing of our peoples, especially youth.

“Pakistan is very keen to strengthen people-to-people contacts and trade and economic ties with Afghanistan.” He also mentioned that Pakistan reopened a key border crossing to resume exports from Afghanistan to India under the Pakistan-Afghanistan Transit Trade Agreement (PATTA). He informed that Pakistan has recently introduced a new visa policy to facilitate business and people-to-people contacts between the two countries. This, he said, shows our support for a flourishing Afghanistan.

People of both the countries have suffered immensely during the past few decades which also affected the economic development prospects. He said there is need to move forward as our youth are calling for change now and it is our duty to create a safe place for them to realize their own potential. He expressed the hope that the seminar will provide the much-needed blueprint for Pak-Afghan cooperative development future.

He also appreciated the role Speaker of Pakistan’s National Assembly Asad Qaiser for personally looking into the matter of Afghan containers that got stuck. He appreciated the organizers, especially the National Assembly led by the Speaker, for excellent arrangements and choosing most relevant topics for discussion.