5th China-Pakistan-Afghanistan Trilateral Foreign Ministers Dialogue tomorrow: Afghan, Chinese FMs due today

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office Thursday announced the visit of Afghan Acting Foreign Minister Maulvi Amir Khan Muttaqi to Islamabad from May 5 to 8.

Pakistan says it desires a peaceful, prosperous, stable and connected Afghanistan and reiterates its commitment to pursue continuous and practical engagement with the interim Afghan government.

“The visit of the acting Afghan foreign minister is a continuation of Pakistan’s political engagement process with Afghanistan which, inter alia, included the visit of Pakistan’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs to Kabul on 29 November 2022 and the visit of a high-level delegation led by the defence minister of Pakistan to Kabul on 22 February 2023,” said the Foreign Office.

This is the first visit of Muttaqi since the formation of the Shehbaz Sharif government. He had earlier visited in November 2021.

Muttaqi will lead a high-level delegation, which includes the Acting Afghan Minister for Commerce and Industry, Haji Nooruddin Azizi, and senior officials from the Afghan Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Transport and Trade.

“Apart from holding bilateral meetings, Muttaqi will also participate in the 5th China-Pakistan-Afghanistan Trilateral Foreign Ministers Dialogue on May 6. State Councilor and Foreign Minister of the Peoples Republic of China Qin Gang will also participate in the Trilateral Foreign Minister’s Dialogue,” added the Foreign Office.

During the visit, the two sides will review the entire spectrum of Pak-Afghan relations in the political, economic, trade, connectivity, peace and security, and education domains.

The Afghan Foreign Office, on the eve of the departure of Muttaqi, said a comprehensive political and business delegation will accompany the foreign minister and he will “hold comprehensive bilateral talks on political, Pakistan-Afghanistan economic relations, regional stability and transit.”

For Pakistan, the most important issue for discussion, as was conveyed to Kabul by Ministers Khar and Asif, will be the continued presence of TTP inside Afghanistan and the inability of the Afghan Interim government to stop them from attacking Pakistan.

Earlier, Pakistan also announced the visit of China’s State Councillor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang on May 5 and 6. This would be his first official visit to Pakistan since assuming the office.

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and State Councillor Qin Gang will co-chair the 4th round of the Pakistan-China Strategic Dialogue.

“The Strategic Dialogue is a structured mechanism that reviews bilateral cooperation in key areas. The two sides will reaffirm the abiding vitality of the All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership; develop a roadmap for multidimensional cooperation between Pakistan and China; and discuss the evolving regional and global landscape,” stated the Foreign Office. The 3rd round of the Pakistan-China Strategic Dialogue took place in July 2021 in Chengdu, China.