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Ghani meets with key Afghans to discuss Ankara summit
President Ashraf Ghani hosted a meeting Thursday of high-ranking Afghan officials and other influential individuals in order to formulate a comprehensive plan for the upcoming peace summit in Ankara, Turkey.
According to the Presidential Palace (ARG), Ghani hopes to secure national consensus to strengthen government’s position in the talks.
ARG said that the meeting was attended by Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation; former Mujahideen leader Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf; former vice president Marshal Abdul Rashid Dostum; Sayed Mansur Naderi, head of the National Solidarity Party of Afghanistan and leader of Ismailis in the country; Mohammad Mohaqiq, the president’s senior adviser; former Balkh governor Atta Mohammad Noor; former vice president Mohammad Younus Qanooni former governor Juma Khan Hamdard; Zabiullah Mujadadi, a jihadist; some members of parliament; the Supreme Court chief justice, and the president’s two deputies.
“The meeting focused on the general security situation, strengthening the national consensus, and the continuation of consultative meetings,” said Dawa Khan Menapal, the deputy presidential spokesman.
However a number of political figures who attended the meeting said it was more focused on creating a single plan for the Ankara summit which is expected to be held on March 27.
“The atmosphere at the meeting was such that all political leaders and even government leaders called for peace, called for an immediate end to the war, and decided to work on a peace plan to reach a conclusion at the Ankara summit soon,” said Satar Murad, a close ally of Atta Noor.
Following US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s letter to Ghani and other key roleplayers along with the plan to establish a transitional government, Ghani appears to be working to bring together political figures in order to establish a unified plan for peace talks.
“In general the meeting was a consultative meeting as a whole, all important Afghan political issues were included; this was not a specific decision-making meeting; and it was just a consultation to build national consensus,” said Faizullah Safi, a close ally of Juma Khan Hamdard.
ARG meanwhile said consultative meetings on peace in Afghanistan will continue. However there were some notable individuals not present at Thursday’s meeting, including former president Hamid Karzai.
Ariana Afghan Airlines has ranked seventh among 45 airlines in Central Asia in Skytrax’s 2026 rankings.
Company officials say Ariana Afghan ranked eighth on the list in 2025, but moved up one place this year following improvements in service quality and the expansion of its operations.
According to the officials, in 2026 the airline met criteria including service quality, flight safety, professional cabin crew, and experience in the aviation sector, placing it among the top 10 airlines in Central Asia.
Skytrax is an international organization that evaluates and ranks the quality of services in the aviation industry and airlines, assessing and ranking carriers annually based on specific criteria.
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Silk Road highway in Wakhan corridor now reaches the China border
The road is expected to be officially opened for use in the near future, potentially improving connectivity through the remote Wakhan Corridor.
The construction of the Silk Road Highway in Afghanistan’s Wakhan Corridor has been fully completed after five years of work, officials in Badakhshan province said.
Amanullah Chehra, head of Rural Rehabilitation and Development in Badakhshan, said the 121.13-kilometre road begins in the Barghil area and stretches to Bzai Gonbad near the Chinese border.
According to officials, the road is between 7 and 10 metres wide and includes three major bridges, each measuring approximately 20 to 22 metres in length. Numerous smaller drainage structures have also been built along the route to facilitate the flow of water.
The road is expected to be officially opened for use in the near future, potentially improving connectivity through the remote Wakhan Corridor.
Afghanistan’s Minister of Refugees and Repatriation, Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, met on Wednesday with Bruno Lemarquis, UNAMA’s Deputy Head for Humanitarian Affairs, to discuss the situation of Afghan returnees and humanitarian assistance.
The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation said Lemarquis briefed the minister on assessments conducted by UN agencies during visits to several provinces to identify the needs of returnee families.
Lemarquis said joint cooperation between UN agencies and the Islamic Emirate is needed to support and resettle returnees. He added that UN agencies are currently assisting thousands of families and called for the expansion of humanitarian assistance.
He also said the international community should pay greater attention to the needs of Afghans, adding that UNAMA is ready to cooperate in addressing challenges facing returnees.
Abdul Kabir welcomed UNAMA’s support and thanked the United Nations for its assistance to Afghans. He said various government institutions have been tasked with addressing returnees’ needs.
The minister also called on aid organizations to continue supporting returnee families, saying a program to resettle thousands of internally displaced families is also underway.
Kabir further said the necessary facilities have been provided for UN agencies to operate and that the Islamic Emirate welcomes UNAMA’s humanitarian cooperation.
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