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Quartet meeting, great opportunity for a lasting peace in Afghanistan

Published

8 years ago

January 17, 2016

(Last Updated On: October 25, 2022)

Afghanistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoF) says that the quadrilateral meeting between Afghanistan, Pakistan, US and China is a great opportunity for a lasting peace in Afghanistan and its next meeting will be held in capital Kabul on Monday, January 18th.

MoF noted that the direct talks between the representatives of Afghan government and the Taliban group will be the main issue of this meeting.

“Considering the commitments of the first quadrilateral meeting and other summits, there are many hopes that we gain achievements,” said Ahmad Shekib Mustaghni, spokesman of MoF.

In the meantime, chairman of the Senate House welcomes holding the second quadrilateral meeting in Kabul but emphasizing that the demands of Afghan people should seriously be considered.

“We welcome the quadrilateral meeting in Kabul but people’s demands and the past 14 years achievements should be seriously considered and efforts for brining peace must be sustainable.

The Ministry of Interior Affairs (MoI) has also announced of taking serious measures for providing the security of the quadrilateral meeting.

“Efforts are underway that people do not face problems. We took serious measures for providing the security of the meeting,” said Sidiq Sidiqi, spokesman of the interior ministry.

Members of Monday’s meeting will be the same as the previous meeting in Islamabad; Afghan Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai, Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Aziz Ahmad Chaudhry, the US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Ambassador Richard G. Olson and China’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan Ambassador Deng Xijun.

The first meeting of the Quadrilateral Coordination Committee (QCC) was held in Islamabad aimed at reviving the Afghan peace process.
The second quadrilateral meeting in Kabul come as the Taliban’s insurgency intensifies, testing the capacity of Afghanistan’s overstretched military and placing pressure on Pakistan to rein in its one-time proxies.

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Afghan consul general in Mumbai Zakia Wardak resigns

Published

41 mins ago

May 4, 2024

Ariana News

(Last Updated On: May 4, 2024)

Zakia Wardak, Afghanistan’s consul general in India’s Mumbai city, resigned on Saturday, following reports of gold smuggling.

The Times of India has reported that Wardak was caught at Mumbai airport with 25 kilograms of gold smuggled from Dubai.

While announcing her resignation, Wardak said on X that over the past year, she had encountered numerous personal attacks and defamation not only directed towards her but also towards her close family and extended relatives.

“These attacks, which appear to be organized, have severely impacted my ability to effectively operate in my role and have demonstrated the challenges faced by women in Afghan society who strive to modernize and bring positive change amidst ongoing propaganda campaigns,” she said.

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Trans-Afghan railway project expected to be completed by end of 2027: Uzbek official

Published

3 hours ago

May 4, 2024

Ariana News

(Last Updated On: May 4, 2024)

The Trans-Afghan railway project is expected to be completed by the end of 2027, Uzbekistan’s Deputy Minister of Transport Jasurbek Choriev said.

“The project will help to connect three countries: Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The railroad will play an important role in the creation of the Eurasian Transport Corridor. As a result, Central Asian countries will have access to an Indian Ocean port,” he said during the III Tashkent International Investment Forum, Trend news agency reported.

The Uzbek deputy minister noted that the railroad will reduce the delivery time of goods from 35 to 5 days, and the cost of goods delivery will be reduced by at least 40 percent.

The Trans-Afghan railway project, first suggested by Uzbekistan in December 2018, proposes to extend the Afghan rail network from Mazar-e-Sharif to Kabul and then to Paktia province.

The cost of construction of the Trans-Afghan railway is estimated at almost $7 billion.

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IFRC calls for rethink of approaches to humanitarian aid to Afghanistan

Published

4 hours ago

May 4, 2024

Ariana News

(Last Updated On: May 4, 2024)

The humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is gravely deteriorating, and a new approach is urgently needed, the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said on Friday.

In a statement, IFRC said that without a radical rethink of approaches to humanitarian aid, the root causes of the crisis cannot be tackled sustainably, as time and funding are running out.

“We have been responding with emergency aid in Afghanistan for years now, and it is time for a rethink,” said Alexander Matheou, IFRC Regional Director for Asia Pacific. “We need to focus on Afghan institutions like the Afghan Red Crescent, which have a permanent role in the country. Their capacity is durable and will serve people before and after aid operations. We need to adapt our programming to focus on resilience and economic independence while still showing solidarity and providing assistance after sudden shocks like the Herat earthquake and the current floods.”

He went on to reiterate the IFRC’s call for investment in people.

“With limited access to education and jobs, we need a focus on youth, on professional and vocational training, and other learning opportunities—interventions designed to boost confidence and give hope. Otherwise, the future really does look grim.”

This call comes ahead of a partnership meeting hosted in Doha by the Afghan Red Crescent Society in cooperation with the Qatar Red Crescent Society and attended by participating national societies from Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Norway, Sweden, Singapore, and Türkiye, as well as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China.

“Communities are lurching from crisis to crisis at a time when their resilience is sub-zero and their coping mechanisms are exhausted. We ask our valued partners to take a long-term view and commit to tackling the root causes of the humanitarian crisis sustainably by investing in Afghan capacity, people, and systems,” said Mutiul Haq Khales, the Acting President of the Afghan Red Crescent Society.

“The needs of over 24 million people are vast and interconnected. Many have been caused by a combination of lingering impacts from decades-long conflict, climate shocks, and a deep economic crisis. The country’s resources are stretched, but capacities exist, and it is important that solutions are implemented to address the root causes of all these overlapping needs,” he added.