Pakistan faced criticism from both Taliban-led Afghanistan and China during the recently concluded China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue held in Islamabad.
Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang and Taliban-led government appointed acting foreign minister of Afghanistan Amir Khan Muttaqi met with Pakistan foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.
Amir Khan Muttaqi, Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister, who is under a travel ban by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), was granted an exemption to travel to Islamabad, where he met with his Chinese counterpart, Qin Gang.
Qin and Muttaqi also met Pakistan chief of army staff General Asim Munit where they discussed issues of mutual interest including defence cooperation and border management.
Gang during his meeting with General Munir demanded that security for the projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and Chinese nationals residing in Pakistan should be upped, people familiar with the developments told CNN-News18.
China continues to invest billions in Pakistan through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which is a network of roads, railways and ports but the project threatens the sovereignty of Pakistan as it pushes it into a debt-trap.
Gang also conveyed Beijing’s message to the Pakistani army leadership on military outposts in Pakistan. General Munir reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to the China-Pakistan strategic relationship and also pledged full support for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.
The project is a vital component of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), another project that also threatens the sovereignty of nations which come under it. Munir thanked Beijing for its unwavering support for Islamabad on regional and international issues.
“Foreign Minister Qin Gang underscored the importance of the longstanding strategic relationship between the brotherly nations and expressed his satisfaction over the progress made on the CPEC while reiterating China’s commitment to its timely completion,” the Inter Services Public Relations Pakistan (ISPR) said in a press release.
Munir and Gang also agreed to enhance China-Pakistan partnership in defence and security to “effectively counter common security challenges”, the release said.
Munir in his meeting with Afghanistan foreign minister (acting) Amir Khan Muttaqi discussed issues related to regional security and border management. Both of them also discussed how to formalise bilateral security mechanisms for improvement in the current security environment.
Pakistan is currently facing a wave of terrorism due to the Pakistan Taliban aka Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The terrorist group continues to carry out deadly attacks on innocents and has the Pakistan security establishment in its crosshairs.
The Pakistan security establishment and the political leadership are unable to figure out why the Taliban leadership in Afghanistan is not reining in their Pakistan unit. It should be noted that the Taliban government played a crucial role in brokering peace talks between both sides and helped implement a ceasefire that no longer exists.
General Munir said that both “brotherly neighbours” must tackle “common challenges of terrorism and extremism”.
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