Pakistan Says Instability in Afghanistan Is Hitting Regional Transit Projects
Pakistan’s ambassador to Moscow, Faisal Niaz Tirmizi, has said that continued instability in Afghanistan has obstructed and effectively halted Pakistan’s connectivity and transit projects to Central Asia and Iran.
In an interview with the Russian newspaper Izvestia, he said Pakistan had hoped Afghanistan would become part of regional processes, but the current situation has hindered Islamabad’s land connectivity routes. According to him, “our transport connectivity projects have, precisely because of this instability, effectively been stopped.”
Tirmizi added that if stability were restored in Afghanistan, trade and regional transport could improve significantly. He said that if Afghanistan were stable, land routes to Central Asia and Iran would become more efficient.
The Pakistani ambassador also raised Islamabad’s concerns over the activity of armed groups operating from داخل Afghanistan, warning that the threat does not affect Pakistan alone. According to him, China, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Russia could also be affected by instability in Afghanistan.
Tirmizi meanwhile said that Pakistan’s representative will attend the Moscow Format meeting on Afghanistan, due to be held in October.
Pakistani officials have repeatedly claimed that attacks in the country are organized from Afghan soil, but the Taliban administration has rejected the allegation and said Afghanistan is not responsible for Pakistan’s “security failure.”
The Moscow Format meeting is one of the regional frameworks on Afghanistan, bringing together a number of countries involved in the Afghan file, and usually focuses on political, security and regional cooperation issues.
