Pakistan, Afghanistan to hold talks

TIL Desk/World/Islamabad/Pakistan’s Foreign Office (FO) on Wednesday confirmed that a high-level Afghan delegation has arrived here and both countries are likely to hold talks later in the day.

The delegation, comprising of Afghanistan Interior Minister Wais Ahmad Barmak and National Directorate of Security [NDS] chief, has come with a message from Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, FO added.

“Afghan government had requested that a high level delegation comprising Interior Minister and NDS chief would like to visit Pakistan with a message from Afghan President and for discussions about cooperation between the two countries.

Delegation is here and will have talks today,” Foreign Office spokesman Dr Mohammad Faisal said in a tweet. Several media reports stated that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had sent the delegation “to handover evidence related to recent attacks in Kabul” to be shared with the Pakistani Army.

This move develops after Kabul was hit by a slew of deadly attacks in the past 10 days – which killed nearly 150 people and wounded hundreds more.

Pakistan and Afghanistan share strained bilateral relationship. Both Kabul and Islamabad steadily purport that the attacks in the two countries were being plotted and carried out by the safe havens located in the two countries.