Int’l conference focusing on Afghanistan Crisis held

ISLAMABAD, March 19 (APP):One-day international conference on “Afghanistan Crisis: What Lies Ahead?” was held here at a local hotel under the aegis of think tank Pakistan House.
The conference mainly focused on understanding various factors of instability in Afghanistan and how Pak-Afghan alliance can better serve economic, security and peace in the region.
The conference also aimed to identify the possible measures that how Afghanistan could address Pakistan’s concerns about India’s negative presence on its soil and how Pakistan could help
countering economic and security challenges that are relevant for the regional stability. An effort was made to develop a solution based approach, in order to assess future policy options.
Lt Gen (Retd) Asif Yasin Malik, former Defence Secretary, in his opening remarks said that Afghanistan was more important to Pakistan.
He argued that an unstable Afghanistan could be a threat for Pakistan and instability in
Afghanistan could also be a threat to China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). He recommended
that border control should be strengthened in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Both countries should take
extra steps for bilateral trade.
Dr Abdul Baqi Amin, Director General, Centre for Strategic and Regional Studies (CSRS) said
that the people and government of Pakistan had helped Afghanistan in the most difficult conditions
during the battle of the Soviet Union, with more than five million Afghan refugees in their homeland,
and so far, about two million Afghan refugees were still living in Pakistan.
He stressed that serious efforts needed to be made to build trust between the two countries. The civil society organizations should play a constructive role in resolving tensions between the two countries, he added.
Jean-Francois Cautain Ambassador Delegation to the European Union to Pakistan on the
occasion suggested that safety of population in both countries was important. He underlined the need
to focus on economy and security to solve the Afghan crisis.
Rana Athar Javed, Director General Pakistan House argued that the reconciliation and negotiation would become the only way forward as the loss of lives and property in Afghanistan had marred the aspirations of emerging Afghan youth. The US and its allies need to provide comprehensive support system, and they should allow a regional stability approach involving China, Russia, and Iran. On principles, Pakistan does not object on India’s role in helping Afghanistan’s development sector, but Afghanistan must address Pakistan’s genuine concerns about India’s support to foreign militants, especially Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), he added.
He said Pak-Afghan alliance in eliminating network of foreign militants on Afghan soil was vital. He concluded that the issue of border management should be resolved through implementing mutually
agreed immigration regulations.
Maj. (Retd) Robert Gallimore, Defence Analyst in speech said that the situation in 2018 was very different from the past as India was pouring money into Kabul and into plethora of proxy actors across Afghanistan, using Afghan soil to destabilize Pakistan. What Kabul and Islamabad must do is to learn
how to manage the borders effectively so that the border mismanagement does not affect
the wider security of the region, he said.
Pir Sayed Ishaq Gailani, Founder and Chairman of the National Solidarity Movement of
Afghanistan, said that India had used Afghanistan against Pakistan and certain elements in Afghan Government were supporting that.
Former Chairman Joint Chief of Staff Committee, General (Retd) Ehsan-ul-Haq concluded
the event by suggesting that no two countries could be compared in their identical ties with any other country. First the US and the Taliban had never had a fundamental problem as they always said that
they were struggling against foreign occupation and they must end linkages with outer extremist
networks and foreign forces, and should accept Afghan Constitution.
He said the US must put its conditions on the table for withdrawal from Afghanistan. The dialogue must be robust and back channeled between US and Taliban. The ceasefire must come unilaterally
from US and the Afghan government, he added.