Ambassador Munir Akram told the UN Security Council on Tuesday that there was no proven direct co-relation of an increase in incidents inside Afghanistan with the conclusion of the North Waziristan agreement signed by the Pakistani government with tribal leaders.
He told the council during a debate on the situation in Afghanistan that Pakistan was pursuing a comprehensive strategy to promote peace and progress in its frontier regions, and this involved military, political, economic and administrative components. The objective of this strategy is to win the hearts and minds of the local population and isolate the militants from the moderates.
He said Pakistan’s commitment to promoting peace, security and progress in Afghanistan was “complete, unswerving and unquestionable”. Peace in Afghanistan would enable Pakistan to realise its strategic objective of serving, together with Afghanistan, as the hub for trade and economic cooperation between the adjacent regions of South Asia, West Asia and Central Asia, he added.
Akram said, “Pakistan’s frontier regions have been deeply affected by three decades of war and conflict in Afghanistan. As part of our programme for modernisation and rapid socio-economic development, it is in Pakistan’s vital interest to eliminate Al Qaeda terrorists, Taliban militancy and Talibnisation in these frontier regions.” He stressed that the “relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan is close, cooperative and intense”. As many as 60, 000 Pakistanis work in Afghanistan, bilateral trade has grown up to $1.2 billion and Pakistan has committed $300 million for development in Afghanistan.