During the 5th Trilateral Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue in Islamabad on Saturday, Pakistan and China underscored their shared goal of achieving a peaceful and stable Afghanistan.
Trilateral Dialogue
The meeting was chaired by Pakistani Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, his Chinese counterpart, Qin Gang, and Acting Foreign Minister of Afghanistan Amir Khan Muttaqi.
All three parties agreed to advance political engagement, counterterrorism cooperation, trade and investments, and connectivity under the trilateral framework.
Pak hosted 5th China-Pakistan-Afghanistan Trilateral FMs Dialogue at MoFA today. Held Productive discussions on political engagement, counter terrorism, trade & connectivity. 🇵🇰 looks forward to advancing our common agenda for regional cooperation under trilateral framework. pic.twitter.com/h44dee61lZ
— Spokesperson 🇵🇰 MoFA (@ForeignOfficePk) May 6, 2023
In addition, China and Pakistan also voiced their opposition to international interference in Afghanistan’s internal affairs and the illegal unilateral sanctions imposed on the country.
Meanwhile, Pakistani PM Shebaz Sharif commented on the trilateral partnership in a tweet, saying, “Unlocking economic potential of the region remains contingent on restoration of regional peace and stability. Investing in peace & stability through a collective & sustained focus will ensure win-win outcomes, including the success of initiatives aimed at greater regional connectivity & socio-economic progress.”
China-Pakistan
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said that China and Pakistan discussed “key issues of mutual concern,” such as peace and security, including the “need for enhanced coordination to counter-terrorism and deepening bilateral cooperation.” They also discussed trade and connectivity and agreed to continue “continuous and practical engagement.”
China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Foreign Ministers' Dialogue signals the restart of the trilateral cooperation mechanism, conveying a great significance of injecting stability into the region and helping increasing the mutual trust between #Afghanistan and #Pakistan that have… pic.twitter.com/fHEjUNdjn8
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) May 7, 2023
Regarding bilateral and transit trade, they “stressed the importance of removing impediments to trade to advance the goal of enhanced regional economic integration and connectivity.”
Meanwhile, Qin reassured that China firmly supports Pakistan in safeguarding its territorial integrity, fighting terrorism, and maintaining unity and stability.
Pakistan-Afghanistan
The Afghan delegate also met Pakistani army chief General Syed Asim Munir and discussed aspects of “regional security, border management, and formalisation of bilateral security mechanisms for improvement in the current security environment.”
The army’s media wing said in its statement that Pakistan “stressed the need for enhanced cooperation between the two brotherly neighbours to effectively tackle the common challenges of terrorism and extremism.”