Search form

You are here

  • Home
  • US envoy on Afghan peace in Pakistan for talks with army chief


US envoy on Afghan peace in Pakistan for talks with army chief

US peace envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad and his delegation hold talks with Pakistan army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa at GHQ, Rawalpindi, on November 2, 2020. (Photo courtesy: ISPR/File)
Short Url

https://arab.news/6p5hy

Updated 08 March 2021
Follow

US envoy on Afghan peace in Pakistan for talks with army chief

  • This is Zalmay Khalilzad’s first visit to Pakistan since Joe Biden took over as president of the United States
  • He is visiting Pakistan after sharing a new "power sharing" formula with Kabul and the Taliban
Updated 08 March 2021
TAHIR KHAN

ISLAMABAD: The United States special envoy on Afghan peace, Zalmay Khalilzad, on Monday held talks with Pakistani army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa at the military headquarters in Rawalpindi and discussed an ongoing peace process to end the long Afghan war, the Pakistani military said.

A statement by the Pakistan army said Commander Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan, General Austin Scott Miller, accompanied Khalilzad and both sides discussed matters of mutual interest, regional security and ongoing Afghanistan reconciliation process with Gen Bajwa. 

“The visiting dignitary greatly appreciated Pakistan's role in the ongoing peace process,” the Pakistan army’s media wing said.

Pakistan's intelligence chief Lt. Gen. Faiz Hameed, special representative for Afghanistan Mohammad Sadiq and national security advisor Moeed Yusuf also attended the meeting.

This was Khalilzad’s first visit to Pakistan since Joe Biden took over as president. His visit also comes after he presented a "power sharing" formula to Afghan leaders and the Taliban, which is aimed at pushing for a political settlement to end the war.

Taliban spokesman Mohammad Naeem confirmed that a draft of the plan was shared with the Taliban on Friday when Khalilzad met senior Taliban leaders in Doha.

“A copy of the plan, which is currently under discussions, has been handed over to us. We will issue a formal response after studying,” Naeem told Arab News on Monday in a WhatsApp reply.

Afghanistan’s National Security Adviser Hamdullah Mohib on Sunday confirmed that Khalilzad has shared proposals with President Ashraf Ghani but declined to share further details. 

A copy of the “Afghanistan Peace Agreement,” available with Arab News, explained the guiding principles for Afghanistan’s future, proposing a transitional peace government, a political roadmap and a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire.

The three-part proposed agreement has addressed the Taliban’s calls for the establishment of an Islamic government and says, “a new High Council for Islamic Jurisprudence shall be established to provide Islamic guidance and advice to all national and local government structures.” 

The High Council for Islamic Jurisprudence shall have a role in advising the judiciary, the draft said. 

A 15-member High Council of Islamic Jurisprudence shall be established within days of this agreement, to provide Islamic guidance on social, cultural, and other contemporary issues, the document added: “A transitional Peace Government of Afghanistan shall be established as of the date of this  Agreement. The Peace Government shall exist until it transfers power to a permanent Government following the adoption of a new Constitution and national elections.”

The United States government said on Sunday all options remained on the table for its remaining 2,500 troops in Afghanistan, saying it has made no decisions about its military commitment after May 1.

The State Department comments came after reports emerged that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had made a new urgent push for a United Nations-led peace effort that included a warning that the US military was considering exiting Afghanistan by May 1.

Blinken in a letter to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said the United States is “considering the full withdrawal of forces by May 1st as we consider other options”.

Peace negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban insurgents in Qatari capital of Doha, have largely stalled as Biden’s administration reviews how to handle the peace process, including troops withdrawal.

Violence in Afghanistan has increased recently as peace talks between the Taliban and the government has made no progress. Both sides have said they were getting ready for a “tough” spring offensive.

Afghan officials and western diplomats told Reuters during Khalilzad’s visit to Kabul he discussed the idea of an interim government after bringing Afghan leaders together for a multilateral conference outside the country.

A Taliban spokesman in Doha said the group has received a proposed draft plan for the peace process and were reviewing it.

Ghani has strongly opposed the idea of the interim government and said any new government should be formed through elections.

Topics: Pakistan Afghanistan Taliban Zalmay Khalilzad Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa

UK team in Pakistan for aviation audit ahead of resumption of PIA flights

Updated 10 sec ago
Follow

UK team in Pakistan for aviation audit ahead of resumption of PIA flights

  • European safety agency in November lifted 2020 bar on PIA operating in bloc
  • PIA resumed Europe operations on Jan. 10 with flight to Paris from Islamabad 
Updated 10 sec ago
NAIMAT KHAN

KARACHI: A delegation from the United Kingdom’s Department for Transport and Civil Aviation Authority arrived in Pakistan today, Monday, to conduct a safety assessment ahead of the resumption of PIA flight operations between Pakistan and the UK.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency in November lifted its ban on Pakistan’s national carrier operating in the bloc, a restriction that was placed in 2020 over concerns about the ability of Pakistani authorities and its Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) to ensure compliance with international aviation standards. The suspension came days after Pakistan launched an investigation into the validity of pilots’ licenses issued in the country following a PIA plane crash that killed 97 people.

On Jan. 10, PIA resumed flights to European destinations with a plane departing for Paris from Islamabad International Airport.

“There will be several high-level meetings between the two sides,” PCAA said in a statement after the UK team’s arrival in Pakistan.

“The discussions will examine aviation safety protocols, review documentation, and evaluate operational procedures. The UK delegation is also scheduled to visit airlines to assess compliance with international standards.”

PCAA said its officials had been engaged for months in technical talks with UK authorities and were “optimistic about the positive outcome of this visit.”

In November EASA said the decision to allow PIA to perform commercial air transport operations to, from and within the EU was based on the “significant efforts” made by the PCAA.

Pakistan had grounded 262 of the country’s 860 pilots, including 141 of PIA’s 434, whose licenses the then aviation minister termed “dubious.” The investigation ultimately did not reveal any major concerns, but the suspension remained in place.

The ban was costing PIA nearly 40 billion Pakistani rupees ($144 million) in revenue annually, according to government records presented in parliament.

Topics: Pakistan UK PIA flights to UK

Truck carrying liquified petroleum gas explodes in central Pakistan, killing 5 people

Updated 21 min 7 sec ago
AP
Follow

Truck carrying liquified petroleum gas explodes in central Pakistan, killing 5 people

  • Over two dozen others injured in Multan, an old city in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province
  • Firefighters have extinguished flames as officers investigate cause behind gas leak in truck
Updated 21 min 7 sec ago
AP

MULTAN, Pakistan: A truck carrying liquified petroleum gas caught fire and exploded overnight near an industrial area in central Pakistan, killing five people and injuring more than two dozen others, officials said Monday.

The explosion in Multan, a city in the eastern Punjab province, substantially damaged nearby shops and homes, and the deaths were caused by the fire and the collapse of roofs of houses, rescue official Mohammad Bilal said.

He said firefighters had extinguished the blaze and officers are investigating to determine exactly what the gas leak in the truck and the subsequent explosion.

Topics: Multan fire LNG

China bans meat imports from Pakistan, Afghanistan and other nations over disease worries

Updated 27 January 2025
Reuters
Follow

China bans meat imports from Pakistan, Afghanistan and other nations over disease worries

  • Ban comes after the World Health Organization released information of disease outbreaks in various countries
  • China stops imports from Palestine, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal and Bangladesh due to sheep pox, goat pox
Updated 27 January 2025
Reuters

BEIJING: China has prohibited imports of sheep, goat, poultry and even-toed ungulates from African, Asian and European countries due to outbreaks of livestock diseases such as sheep pox, goat pox and foot-and-mouth-disease.

The ban, which also includes processed and unprocessed products, comes after the World Health Organization released information of disease outbreaks in various countries, according to a series of announcements by China’s General Administration of Customs dated Jan. 21.

The ban from the world’s largest meat importer affects Ghana, Somalia, Qatar, Congo (DRC), Nigeria, and Tanzania, Egypt, Bulgaria, East Timor and Eritrea.

China also said it has stopped imports of sheep, goat and related products from Palestine, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal and Bangladesh due to sheep pox and goat pox outbreaks.

It also blocked the imports of even-toed ungulates and related products from Germany following an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, it said. 
 

Topics: Pakistan China Ties

Imran Khan’s party asks government to form committee to appoint new Pakistan election commissioner

Updated 27 January 2025
Follow

Imran Khan’s party asks government to form committee to appoint new Pakistan election commissioner

  • Demand comes as Pakistan Chief Election Commissioner Sikander Sultan Raja’s tenure expires
  • Khan’s party accuses Raja of manipulating results of February 2024 elections, which he denies 
Updated 27 January 2025
Shahjahan Khurram

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party on Monday repeated its demand for the government to constitute a parliamentary committee to appoint a new chief election commissioner (CEC), a day after his term in office expired. 

Omar Ayub, a PTI lawmaker and leader of the opposition in the lower house of Pakistan’s parliament, wrote to Speaker Ayaz Sadiq on Jan. 15 to form a parliamentary committee to appoint a new chief election commissioner. Ayub said Raja’s term would expire on Feb. 26, urging him to constitute the committee “to facilitate this important constitutional requirement.”

Raja oversaw Pakistan’s contentious general election last year which were marred by a countrywide shutdown of cellular networks, suspension of Internet services and delayed results. The PTI and other opposition parties alleged the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) under Raja manipulated the results of the polls to facilitate his political rivals. The ECP has strongly rejected the PTI’s allegations while the caretaker government at the time said mobile phone and Internet services were suspended to maintain law and order in the country. 

“Wrote a letter to the Speaker National Assembly of Pakistan on 15th January 2025 to constitute a Parliamentary Committee for the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner,” Ayub wrote on social media platform X. 

“Sikander Sultan Raja’s term ended yesterday (26th January 2025). He has no moral authority to continue. He and the 2 ‘retired’ commissioners should step down immediately,” he added. 

Tensions between Khan’s party and Raja escalated in August 2022 when the ECP ruled that the PTI had received millions of dollars in funds from foreign countries, including the United States, the United Arab Emirates, the UK and Australia, in violation of the constitution and concealed information related to it. Khan’s party denied it had hidden any information related to the funding. 

In a separate verdict in October 2022, the ECP disqualified Khan from public office in a case registered against the ex-premier for failing to declare assets he earned from the sale of state gifts. Khan and his party have denied any wrongdoing. 

Khan, who has been in jail since August 2023 on a slew of charges, was ousted from the prime minister’s post in April 2022 via a parliamentary vote. Once considered close to the military, Khan had a falling out with Pakistan’s powerful army in the days leading to his ouster. 

Since his ouster from office, the former prime minister has led a defiant campaign against the military, whom he accuses of supporting his political rivals. Pakistan’s army and the government both reject his allegations strongly, with the military saying it does not interfere in politics. 

The development also takes place amid renewed political tensions between the government and the PTI after the latter withdrew from negotiations with the former. Both sides kicked off talks last month to ease political tensions in the country. The PTI demanded the government release Khan and all political prisoners, and constitute judicial commissions to probe anti-government protests that took place in May 2023 and November 2024. 

The PTI announced last week it would not partake in further talks with the government unless it forms judicial commissions. The government’s negotiation committee said it would respond to the PTI’s demands by Jan. 28, criticizing Khan’s party for ending talks “unilaterally.

Topics: Pakistan Election Commission of Pakistan ECP PTI Imran Khan

Pakistan PM, president condemn gun attack on speaker Azad Kashmir’s convoy

Updated 27 January 2025
Follow

Pakistan PM, president condemn gun attack on speaker Azad Kashmir’s convoy

  • Chaudhry Latif Akbar’s convoy was fired upon when it arrived on Sunday in village near Muzaffarabad
  • Shehbaz Sharif prays for early recovery of three persons injured, orders stern action against culprits
Updated 27 January 2025
KASHIF IMRAN

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday condemned a gun attack targeting the speaker of the Kashmir region administered by Pakistan that left three people injured, tasking authorities to take stern action against the culprits, state-run media reported. 

Speaker Chaudhry Latif Akbar, a leader of the Sharif-led ruling coalition ally Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), was visiting his constituency in Kakliyot village around 15km south of Muzaffarabad when the shooting took place on Sunday as per news reports. 

Three PPP supporters who were part of the convoy were injured in the attack. Akbar had reportedly received threats from Raja Amir Zafar, a local district council member, who vowed that no one would be allowed to enter the village for Akbar’s visit. 

“President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have strongly condemned the incident of firing on the convoy of Speaker of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Sunday. 

Zardari described the attack on the speaker as a “cowardly and despicable act,” praying for the early recovery of the injured. 

In his statement, the Pakistani prime minister prayed for the early recovery of the injured persons. 

“The Prime Minister directed the authorities concerned to take immediate action and ensure the arrest of those responsible for the attack,” Radio Pakistan reported. 

Azad Kashmir is a self-governing administrative unit under Pakistan’s control but is not recognized as a sovereign country. The Muslim-majority Kashmir region has long been a source of tensions between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan, leading them to fight two out of three wars since winning independence from the British Empire in 1947 over the disputed territory. 

The scenic mountain region is divided between India, which rules the populous Kashmir Valley and the Hindu-dominated region around Jammu city, Pakistan, which controls a wedge of territory in the west called AJK, and China, which holds a thinly populated high-altitude area in the north. Besides Pakistan, India also has an ongoing conflict with China over their disputed frontier.
 

Topics: azad kashmir

Latest updates

UK team in Pakistan for aviation audit ahead of resumption of PIA flights
Truck carrying liquified petroleum gas explodes in central Pakistan, killing 5 people
China bans meat imports from Pakistan, Afghanistan and other nations over disease worries
Imran Khan’s party asks government to form committee to appoint new Pakistan election commissioner
Lukashenko pockets massive win in Belarus election scorned by the West

Search form

Print Edition
Read pdf version Subscribe now
© 2025 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.