China agrees to process visas for Afghan traders

Chinese ambassador to Afghanistan Wang Yu has pledged to start processing visas for Afghan traders to visit China, the Foreign Ministry of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) said Sunday.

This comes after Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi met with China’s ambassador Wang on Saturday in Kabul, a ministry spokesman said.

“IEA acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met Wang Yu, the Chinese ambassador to Kabul this evening The meeting focused on bilateral relations, recent Afghan-Chinese Foreign Minister meeting, joint trade and particularly the export of Afghan pine nuts to China,” Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesman for Foreign Ministry said in a tweet.

“In response to Muttaqi’s request, the Chinese ambassador pledged to facilitate necessary visa services for Afghan traders. Minister Muttaqi thanked China for its efforts towards expanding political and trade relations between the two countries,” Balkhi further tweeted.

The meeting comes days after the first shipment of Afghan pine nuts was exported to China since the takeover of Afghanistan by the IEA in mid-August.