Pakistan, Afghanistan Agree To Use Multiple Channels To Act Against Terror Groups

ASTANA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 10th Jun, 2017 ) : Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to use Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG) mechanism as well as bilateral channels to undertake specific actions against terror groups and to evolve, through mutual consultations, a mechanism to monitor and verify such actions.

The matter was discussed in a meeting between Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Astana on Friday, said a Foreign Office statement.

During the meeting, Prime Minister Sharif joined President Ghani in condemning the recent terror attacks, especially the wave of violence in Kabul following a truck bomb in center of the city last week resulting in loss of life and injury to hundreds of people.

The prime minister said that Pakistan remained committed to peace and stability in Afghanistan. "Pakistan's efforts for peace, stability and economic progress of Afghanistan are a matter of its commitment to the brotherly people of Afghanistan, millions of who have been hosted in Pakistan for past 37 years," he remarked.

He said that terrorism remained a common threat to both Pakistan and Afghanistan. Prime Minister Sharif said Pakistan and its forces were valiantly fighting the menace of terrorism and the country had rendered immense human and economic sacrifice in the struggle in the recent years.

He viewed that close cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan was important for eliminating terrorism from the region. The two leaders agreed to use QCG to promote peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan.

The prime minister stressed the importance of reconciliation and a politically negotiated settlement as the best solution to the Afghan conflict. In this context, he highlighted the serious efforts undertaken by Pakistan for facilitating an Afghan-owned and Afghan-led process.