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Tobias Ellwood faces no confidence motion after praising IEA
Tobias Ellwood, chairman of the select defense committee in the UK parliament, is facing a no confidence motion after publishing a video in which he claimed Afghanistan has improved since the Islamic Emirate regained power.
The former UK defense minister faced a backlash from members of his own committee after claiming security in Afghanistan has “vastly improved” and “corruption is down” since the IEA returned in 2021.
He has called for Britain to reopen its embassy in Kabul and engage with the IEA.
Ellwood has since from Twitter and expressed regret over its recording.
But his apology has not prevented members of the cross-party Commons defense committee from attempting to oust him as chairman.
The committee has confirmed that the Tory MPs Mark Francois and Richard Drax, along with Labour’s Kevan Jones and Derek Twigg, submitted a no confidence motion on Wednesday, Telegraph reported.
Asked why he supported a vote on the former Army captain’s chairmanship, Jones told the PA news agency: “I support this motion because it is not the first time the chairman has made comments which are at odds with the committee. His latest video is a step too far.”
Ellwood has yet to respond to the publication of the motion.
In a previous statement, published on Thursday, Ellwood said the “reflections of my personal visit could have been better worded”, no matter how “well intentioned” they were.
Ellwood tweeted: “I’ve always believed politics includes looking over the horizon and daring to explore viable, long-term solutions, no matter how challenging the problem.
“But with that comes a duty to put your hand up when you get it wrong – as I did in reporting my recent Afghan visit.”
Ellwood said he witnessed the “increasing restrictions on women and girls” while in Afghanistan but argued that the crackdown on female liberties indicated “our current strategy, of shouting from afar after abruptly abandoning the country in 2021, is not working”.
Ellwood’s video was criticized by his colleagues.
At Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, Francois told Rishi Sunak that he and some of his committee colleagues were “absolutely stunned” by the video.
The Prime Minister told the backbencher he would “look into” the video.
A high-ranking Uzbek delegation comprising government officials and private sector representatives from the Republic of Karakalpakstan arrived in Kabul on Saturday to discuss the expansion of trade and economic cooperation with Afghanistan.
The delegation is headed by Amanbay Orinbayev, Chairman of the Supreme Council of Karakalpakstan.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, the delegation is expected to hold talks with Nooruddin Azizi, the Minister of Industry and Commerce, focusing on strengthening bilateral trade and economic relations.
The ministry said the visiting delegation will also participate in trade connectivity meetings and business-to-business sessions aimed at enhancing commercial cooperation between the two sides.
As part of the visit, the Uzbek delegation is also scheduled to travel to Balkh province, where members will attend additional trade meetings and inaugurate an exhibition showcasing Uzbekistan’s domestic products.
Hamid Karzai, former president of Afghanistan, has expressed concern over recent developments along the Durand Line, saying Pakistan has increased military and economic pressure on villages and residents living near the line.
In a statement, Karzai said the apparent purpose of these pressures is to push residents of Durand Line areas to seek help from Pakistani institutions for resolving security and other local issues.
He added that, amid this situation, some tribal elders from both sides of the Durand Line recently signed documents described as “peace agreements,” which were later officially welcomed by Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
According to Karzai, these developments amount to an effort by Pakistan to legitimize the Durand Line and represent an action against Afghanistan’s national sovereignty.
The former Afghan president also urged the relevant Afghan authorities to provide the public with a clear explanation regarding the recent agreements and developments along the Durand Line.
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SAARC failure pushes Pakistan toward trilateral ties with Afghanistan, China, Bangladesh: Dar
Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar has said that the failure of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is pushing Pakistan toward exploring trilateral cooperation frameworks involving Afghanistan, China, and Bangladesh.
Speaking at the South Asian Federation of Accountants (SAFA) Conference in Lahore on Friday, Dar said SAARC has “unfortunately not been able to kick off,” limiting regional economic integration and cooperation.
He said Pakistan is now looking at alternative regional arrangements to strengthen economic connectivity and trade, including trilateral formats such as China–Pakistan–Afghanistan and China–Pakistan–Bangladesh.
Dar stressed that South Asia cannot remain in “isolation,” noting that the region, home to nearly two billion people, is missing significant economic opportunities due to weak cooperation among neighbouring countries.
The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was established in 1985 to promote economic and regional integration among South Asian countries, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
The organisation was designed to encourage cooperation in areas such as trade, development, education, and cultural exchange. However, in recent years, SAARC’s effectiveness has been significantly limited due to political tensions between member states, particularly between India and Pakistan, leading to stalled summits and reduced regional engagement.
As a result, regional economic cooperation in South Asia has largely remained underdeveloped compared to other regional blocs around the world.
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