- Tehmina Janjua leads 28-member delegation of Pakistan
KABUL: The inaugural session of the Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) was held in Kabul on Sunday in which both the countries discussed counter-terrorism and regional security.
Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua headed the 28-member delegation of Pakistan during the session while the Afghan side was represented by Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai.
The Pakistani delegation included representatives of foreign and interior ministries, personnel of intelligence agencies and officers of Pakistan armed forces.
Foreign Office (FO) Spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal said that the foreign secretary Janjua, in her opening remarks to the media, said that the presence of Pakistan delegation in Kabul just two days before general elections “shows our commitment to APAPPS”.
The action plan provides the forum to the neighbouring countries to hold a dialogue on an institutional level, the foreign office said, adding that five working groups have been formed under the APAPPS.
Besides other issues, the return of Afghan refugees was also discussed in the meeting.
Earlier in the day, Janjua had arrived in Kabul with a 28-member delegation for the inaugural session of the APAPPS.
The APAPPS is a bilateral framework directed towards enhancing cooperation and coordination and reducing hostility between Pakistan and Afghanistan by employing working groups on both sides.
A few days ago, US Central Command chief General Joseph Votel said that the US continues to work closely with Pakistan to help the country fulfil its role in accomplishing a durable political settlement in Afghanistan.
During a visit to Afghanistan last month, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa had said that the APAPPS would bring increased cooperation and coordination between the two countries.
Earlier in April, after then-prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s Kabul visit, the FO had stated that both countries had agreed on seven key principles to put the working groups under the APAPPS into operation.
Both countries had agreed to abstain from publically blaming each other and instead use the APAPPS’s forum to address issues of mutual concerns and contentions.
