Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif told the Heart of Asia conference in Islamabad that Pakistani government would continue to support an Afghan-owned and led peace and reconciliation process “which remains the most viable option to end violence and promote stability in Afghanistan”.

The prime minister said Pakistan was committed to eradicating terrorism, violence and extremism from its soil, and that military operations Zarb-i-Azb and the National Action Plan were “delivering desired results”.

“The emergence of newer and more threatening terrorist groups like Daesh should also strengthen our resolve against terrorism,” he said. “We should envisage collective and coordinated measures on the regional security front to ensure that the gains and struggle against terrorism are durable and irreversible.”

“Finalisation of border management standard operating procedures will be helpful in containing the movement of terrorists across the border,” he said.

“The massive cross-border movement of refugees constitutes a security risk and is exploited by the miscreants for their nefarious designs,” Nawaz said, adding that efforts for stability in Afghanistan should envisage the return and resettlement of Afghan refugees to their homeland in a dignified manner.

Meanwhile, President Ghani talked about the ‘unintended consequences’ of Pakistan’s military operations.

“Unfortunately, recent events in Pakistan have forced us to host close to 350,000 to 500,000 Pakistani refugees on our soil. The refugee issue is a common issue, like other issues that confront us,” Ghani said.

He lauded Pakistan’s decision to launch operations against militancy, but said the action had “created unintended consequences bringing about the displacement of a significant number of these [militant] groups onto our soil”.

“The Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan launched a vicious attack on children in Peshawar for which Pakistan robustly responded. But that very response brought them onto our country. Until now we have launched 40 operations through our Special Forces against them.

“What is the nature of the Taliban and how do we deal with it?” he questioned. “There is no historical precedent for solving this problem,” he said, referring to the challenges posed by terrorism.

“What is driving the conflict?” the Afghan president asked. “Is it insurgency or are we dealing with a much larger conflict?”

“The first driver of conflict is regional and international terror groups… Al Qaeda, Daesh and terrorists from China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, the Middle East are all, unfortunately, present on our soil.”

“The quarrel of these people [militants] is not with the government of Afghanistan or its people. We are fighting on behalf of all of you,” Ghani told the conference, “But we are the ones who are daily suffering some of the worst atrocities, including the butchering of our children and elderly who are totally innocent.”

Ghani called for a mechanism of regional cooperation to examine “how the networks of terror coordinate, co-finance, what is their linkage with the criminal economy, how is radicalism shaping and maligning our holy religion and our opportunities for global engagement and dialogue”.

Pakistan and Afghanistan have been trading accusations of supporting insurgents since Afghan peace talks brokered by Islamabad collapsed last summer, suspending a reconciliation process between Kabul and the Afghan Taliban.

The Heart of Asia gathering brings together Asian and other countries to discuss the future of Afghanistan and its neighbours.