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Istanbul Conference postponed until ‘meaningful progress can be made’
Turkey, Qatar and the United Nations officially announced the postponement of the planned Istanbul Conference scheduled from april 24 to May 4.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the three co-hosts said: “In view of recent developments, and after extensive consultations with the parties, it has been agreed to postpone the conference to a later date when conditions for making meaningful progress would be more favorable.
“Turkey, Qatar and the United Nations will resolutely continue their earnest efforts to achieve peace in Afghanistan,” the statement read.
The co-hosts had planned the conference with the participation of the representatives of the Afghan Republic and the Taliban to add momentum to the negotiations that started in Doha last September to achieve a just and lasting peace in Afghanistan, read the statement.
Last week however, the Taliban issued a short statement saying they would not attend any peace conference until all foreign troops had withdrawn from the country.
Their announcement followed closely on the heels of US President Joe Biden and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s announcement that all foreign troops would be out of Afghanistan by September 11.
The Taliban said however this was in contravention of the US-Taliban agreement signed in Doha last year which stipulated foreign troops need to leave by May 1.
Seven Afghan migrants have been killed after a vehicle carrying Afghan migrants collided with a fuel-carrying vehicle in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchestan province.
According to the human rights organization HalVash, the accident occurred on Friday in the Sarbaz area of Sistan and Baluchestan.
Siyavash Mohbi, the head of Iran’s traffic police in Sistan and Baluchestan, said the Afghan nationals had entered Iran illegally.
He added that nine other people were injured in the incident.
Mohbi attributed the accident to the negligence of the driver of the vehicle carrying the migrants.
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has announced that its Contact Group on Afghanistan will meet on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
OIC Secretary-General Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed is leading a high-level delegation from the organization’s General Secretariat to participate in the UN General Assembly’s High-Level Week and hold bilateral meetings with heads of delegations from member states as well as senior UN and international officials.
The OIC will also convene its Annual Coordination Meeting of Member States’ Foreign Ministers at UN Headquarters.
According to the organization, several ministerial contact groups and specialized committees will meet on the sidelines of the General Assembly. These include groups focusing on Palestine, Muslim communities and minorities, regional issues in Europe, Jammu and Kashmir, Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, and Afghanistan.
The OIC did not provide a specific date for the Afghanistan Contact Group meeting.
Ahmad Jan Bilal, General Director of State-Owned Corporations, met with Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad during a visit to Iran to discuss expanding cooperation in the oil and gas sector.
Bilal, accompanied by Mohammad Nasir Rahimi, chief executive of the Afghan state-owned Oil and Gas Corporation, held talks with the Iranian minister on supplying Afghanistan with its oil and gas needs, technical and vocational training, and joint cooperation in oil and gas exploration.
Bilal and his delegation also visited the Iranian Oil Ministry’s research center and oil refineries in Tehran, where they reviewed the facilities’ technical and professional activities and capabilities.
The Iranian side expressed readiness for comprehensive cooperation, necessary coordination and implementation of joint projects in the areas discussed.
At the end of the meeting, both sides introduced joint technical teams tasked with coordinating and following up on the necessary measures to implement the agreed areas of cooperation.
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