Pakistan’s prime minister arrived in Afghanistan on Friday for a day-long visit on purpose to reduce the pressure and ease the relations between the two neighbours and start over the talk for peace talks with the Taliban. Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was invited by Afghan President Asharf Ghani and the two inspected an honour guard at the Presidential Palace in Kabul before heading in for meetings.
Pakistan has been under pressure from Kabul and Washington to cease providing shelters to militants blamed for fights in Afghanistan, a charge Islamabad denies. Pakistan, widely believed to bring Taliban on desk to discuss and negotiate a better compromise to reduce the chaos, also insists its influence over the insurgents has been exaggerated.
Kabul and Islamabad regularly trade accusations of importing the other country’s militants and the harsh language has underscored the strains between them.
Late on Thursday, Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement refusing a claim made by Kabul of Islamabad having violated Afghan airspace with Pakistani Air Force raids inside Afghan territory during counter-terrorism operations earlier in the week.
The statement said details about the ongoing “operations is shared with the Afghan security forces on a regular basis.” In the latest military actions, Pakistan told the Afghan about them and stressed that these operations were on Pakistani side of the border, it said.
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