The officials of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), and Pakistan agreed that from now on Afghan trucks will not be unloaded in Peshawar and Quetta of Pakistan.

The IEA and the Pakistani delegation in Kabul agreed in Tuesday’s meeting that from now on Afghan trucks will not be unloaded in Peshawar and Quetta, but will travel freely to all parts of Pakistan.

According to IEA, the same facility has been considered for Pakistani trucks when crossing Afghanistan to the Central Asia countries.

The two sides have also agreed to keep the price of coal unchanged and to facilitate trade in this field.

The two sides have also formed a joint committee for further monitoring.

In a separate meeting with IEA’s acting foreign minister, the Pakistani delegation has once again emphasized the expansion of trade relations between the two countries and said that they want to jointly invest with Afghan investors in electricity generation so that Pakistan can get electricity instead of importing coal from Afghanistan. 

In this meeting, Amir Khan Muttaqi, the IEA’s acting foreign minister, emphasized that the policy of the Islamic Emirate is to make Afghanistan the economic crossroads of the region.

Both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Pakistani delegation agreed that they will provide the necessary facilities in the fields of export, import and passenger movement between the two countries.

Afghan Acting Minister of Industry and Commerce Nooruddin Azizi on Tuesday said that the country is holding talks with a Pakistani delegation to sign an agreement to facilitate bilateral trade. 

A trade delegation from Pakistan, led by Commerce Secretary Saleh Farooqui, arrived in Kabul on Monday evening to hold talks on coal imports as well as transit and barter trade between the two countries.

“The barter trade, which is a serious issue for Afghan traders, cross-staffing, the trade of materials, and coal will be discussed,” the acting Minister of Commerce and Industry Azizi said. Pakistan’s Commerce and Industry Ministry had earlier said that delegates will hold talks regarding trade, transit and transportation with the Afghan authorities.

Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investment (ACCI) had also said that Islamabad was trying to boost its trade with Afghanistan, local media reported.

Kabul had earlier raised coal prices for Pakistan, two days ahead of the delegation’s visit. The coal price has increased from USD 200 to USD 280 per tonne. The price of coal was increased owing to the constant surge of price in the global market, Afghanistan’s Ministry of Minerals and Petroleum spokesperson Ismatullah Burhan said adding that 10,000 tons of coal are exported to Pakistan every day earning the country millions.

Earlier this month, the IEA had increased the price of coal by 30 percent after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved importing of coal from Afghanistan. As per Sharif, Pakistan would save more than two billion dollars by importing coal from Afghanistan.

Sharif had approved the import of super-critical quality coal from Afghanistan in Pakistani rupee instead of dollars to help generate low-cost electricity in his country.