Neighbourhood outreach: Qureshi embarks on four-nation tour today

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi will embark upon a four-nation tour on Monday (today) to promote various initiatives and ideas for regional cooperation, especially in promoting economic and people-to-people linkages.

Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua and senior officials of Ministry of Foreign Affairs will accompany him. “The Foreign Office delegation’s whirlwind tour will take them to Afghanistan, Iran, China and Russia from December 24-26, 2018 as part of the government’s policy of outreach in the neighbourhood,” says the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement.

As fast moving changes take place in Afghanistan, Qureshi was earlier quoted as saying in Multan that Pakistan welcomed the new US policy of partial troop withdrawal from Afghanistan. In the past, Pakistan had expressed concern over such a withdrawal.

The Foreign Office adds, “Developments concerning peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan would also be discussed during these meetings.” Pakistan says it has always believed in an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process and recently the international community’s consensus to adopt this as the guiding principle to resolve the 40-year-old Afghan conflict vindicates its long held view.

The visit to the region takes places when changes in the Ashraf Ghani government have taken place before arrival of the Pakistani delegation. The Afghan president has brought in Amrullah Saleh and Assadullah Khaled, both former heads of the Afghan intelligence agency, as interior minister and defence minister.

Both have hawkish views about Pakistan. “During the visit, the foreign minister will discuss Pakistan’s bilateral relations with the senior leadership of these countries to strengthen cooperation in various areas. Implementing the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan, Pakistan is eager to strengthen ties with neighbours and regional partners,” says the statement.

Such cooperation is key to unleashing Pakistan’s considerable potential and expanding mutually beneficial economic cooperation and development. Besides detailed exchange of views on important areas of bilateral cooperation, views will also be exchanged on the fast changing regional and international environment.