FM urges world to see Afghanistan as shared responsibility

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Monday said 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’ organized by the Centre for Afghanistan, Middle East & Africa (CAMEA) of the Institute of Strategic Studies. The day-long seminar held in collaboration with Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) focused on the situation in Afghanistan, particularly the humanitarian crisis.

FM Qureshi said the emergence of new conflicts did not mean that the world can afford to forget old ones, adding that the wounds of the 40-year war and bloodshed in Afghanistan would 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 said. He hoped that with the help of regional countries and international partners, the proud Afghan nation would once again become an important country in terms of regional peace, economic trade and regional connectivity. The foreign minister said since August 15, 2021, the interim Afghan government remained embattled with the humanitarian and economic crises, as well as a liquidity

He also mentioned the crunch exacerbated by the lack of a functional banking system. “The positive aspects are mainly internal stability, no civil war, the opening of girls’ schools and the interim government’s commitment to addressing terrorism.”