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Volatile Afghan situation is out of Islamabad’s control: Pakistan’s NSA
Pakistan’s National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf has expressed concern over the worsening situation in Afghanistan, terming it “extremely bad and out of Pakistan’s control”.
Briefing the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs on Friday, he warned of an impending risk of an attack by Tehreek-i-Taliban, who, he said, could enter Pakistan from Afghanistan disguised as refugees.
The national security adviser stressed that the UN Refugee Agency needed to set up camps for Afghan refugees.
According to Pakistan’s Dawn News, Yusuf however, denied the presence of the Taliban in Pakistan and said the reports were “Indian propaganda”.
Yusuf said Pakistan was very concerned about the changing situation following the US troop withdrawal and that his country would be adversely affected by the growing violence.
“The region’s peace is conditional on peace in Afghanistan,” he said.
Yusuf further said that the Afghan government needed to work on improving relations with Pakistan if it wanted peace in the country, Dawn News reported.
“[Also], I don’t see the US offering a financial package to Afghanistan and in that case, only Pakistan can provide a trade route to the landlocked country,” he said.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi also briefed the committee, saying that Pakistan intended to suggest power sharing in Afghanistan to avoid civil war.
He added that in case of a civil war in Afghanistan, Pakistan would not be able to handle the influx of refugees.
The foreign minister said Taliban objected to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s participation in negotiations, adding that they were “intelligent and had grown wise” over time, Dawn News reported. He added that Taliban had changed after Doha talks.
He warned that in case the situation in “Afghanistan goes back to what it was in the 1990s”, Pakistan would have to deal with a refugee influx.
In this regard, he said, Pakistan would be monitoring illegal border crossings and was also fencing its borders.
“We have to manage things in a better manner to control terrorism,” the minister remarked.
Qureshi added that he, the prime minister and security officials had had meetings with the Uzbeks, Tajiks and Hazaras so as to make it clear to them that “there is no favourite in Afghanistan”.
“We want to play the role of a good neighbour and are not thinking about strategic depth [in Afghanistan],” he said. “Our policy on Afghanistan is clear. We want peace and stability in the country and not repeat our mistakes.”
Turkmenistan is committed to complete the Turkmenistan–Afghanistan– Pakistan–India (TAPI) energy project together with the regional countries, Muhammetmyrat Amanov, CEO of TAPI Pipeline Company Limited, said.
“Turkmenistan is making significant progress on the TAPI natural gas pipeline, which aims to supply 33 billion cubic meters annually to South Asia” Amanov said speaking at the Turkmen Energy Investment Forum (TEIF 2024) in Paris.
He highlighted that the Turkmenistan section of the pipeline is complete and the ongoing discussions to advance the project beyond Turkmenistan are in strict alignment with international standards.
Amanov said the project emphasizes environmental sustainability by leveraging natural gas to reduce emissions significantly compared to coal and oil, thereby tackling indoor pollution and enhancing regional air quality.
“In light of the ongoing project developments, Turkmenistan remains committed to upholding international law, fulfilling its obligations, and adhering to international norms and regulations,” he stressed.
Three road construction projects worth about one billion Afghanis started in capital Kabul on Saturday.
The projects were inaugurated by Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar.
The projects are: the second phase of Kotal Khairkhane road, the first part of the Shahid square to Qasaba, and the Airport road to Gumruk.
In the inauguration ceremony, Mullah Baradar said that Kabul municipality is working hard to beautify and regulate the city, and people should cooperate with the government in protecting public benefit projects.
He directed the officials of Kabul municipality to complete the mentioned projects on time and with good quality.
The second phase of Kotel Khairkhaneh road is 2.5 kilometers long and 60 meters wide. Thie road will cost 364 million Afghanis and will be completed in 20 months.
The Shahid square-Qasaba road is 1.8 kilometers long and 45 meters wide, which will be built at a cost of 175 million Afghanis in one year.
The Airport-Gumruk road is 2.7 km long and 60 meters wide, which will be completed at a cost of 407 million Afghanis in 20 months.
The projects are funded by Kabul Municipality.
Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu said on Friday that the main threat for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) members emanates from Afghanistan where international terrorist groups find shelter due to unstable and indefinite political situation.
Speaking at a meeting of the SCO defense ministers in Kazakhstan’s capital Astana, Shoygu said Washington has stepped up efforts to restore its positions in Central and South Asia that were lost after the withdrawal of coalition troops from Afghanistan, Anadolu Agency reported.
The military chief called “unacceptable” the deployment of the American military infrastructure in the region, arguing that intentions should be regarded as “a direct threat to stability in the SCO space.”
According to him, the US is trying to impose a new security system in the Asia-Pacific region for dominance.
This comes as the Islamic Emirate has repeatedly emphasized that it does not allow anyone to pose threats to any other country from Afghanistan soil.
Recently, Mohammad Yaqub Mujahid, Acting Minister of National Defense Mohammad Yaqub Mujahid said that no destructive groups including Daesh have physical presence in Afghanistan,
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