Neighbors to help Afghan peace
Neighbors to help Afghan peace
ISLAMABAD (Reuter): Visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati and Pakistani leaders agreed yesterday to work together for peace in Afghanistan.
"Iran and Pakistan agreed to support efforts to bring the fratricidal fighting in Afghanistan to an end and to work for a peaceful solution which would be acceptable to all Afghan parties," a Pakistani foreign ministry statement said.
"Both countries agreed to extend full cooperation to any solution agreed upon by the Afghan leaders and people, reflecting the ethnic and demographic realities in Afghanistan."
It said both sides also agreed to keep up regular high-level contacts to promote the peace process in Afghanistan.
Velayati, who arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday, held talks with Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, President Farooq Leghari and Foreign Minister Aseff Ahmad Ali before leaving for India.
Iran has been playing an active diplomatic role in Afghanistan, where embattled President Burhanuddin Rabbani is under pressure from opposition factions to step down.
Tehran has been concerned about the rise of the Taleban Islamic militia that controls more than half Afghanistan and has besieged the Afghan capital since October,
Iranian media accuse Pakistan of setting up the militia and Saudi Arabia of funding it. Both countries deny the charges.
The Taleban accuse Iran of backing Rabbani and said last week that they had rejected an Iranian offer to mediate. Tehran says it is neutral in Afghanistan's factional feuding.
Pakistani officials have spoken in the past of "differences of perception" between Islamabad and Tehran over the legitimacy of Rabbani's administration.
Pakistan's relations with the Afghan government have been icy since its embassy in Kabul was sacked on Sept. 6 by a crowd protesting Islamabad's alleged support for the Taleban.
The Taleban, described by official Kabul radio as "Benazir Bhutto's militia", have vowed to oust Rabbani and install strict Islamic rule throughout Afghanistan.
The foreign ministry statement said Velayati discussed a project to supply Iranian gas to Pakistan, saying Tehran would send a delegation to Pakistan soon to discuss gas pricing.
He also reviewed an agreement under which Pakistan is buying Iranian bulldozers in exchange for the sale of cement and sugar plants, and discussed a proposed joint oil refinery and award of road construction projects in Pakistan to Iranian firms.