Sept 2, 2021: Top UK diplomat due today amid heightened Afghan diplomacy.

British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is due to arrive in Islamabad on Thursday (today) to discuss the situation in Afghanistan as Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi hosted his Dutch counterpart and spoke with the Canadian Foreign Minister to discuss Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts.

Since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, Dominic Raab’s arrival in Islamabad is the third high-level visit to the West in a week, highlighting Pakistan’s centrality to Afghanistan. Secretary Raab’s visit follows visits by German and Dutch foreign ministers on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Visits by top diplomats from key European countries show that the West is keen to learn about the ground situation after the fall of Kabul and the withdrawal of US and NATO forces from Afghanistan.

Official sources confirmed that Foreign Secretary Raab will arrive here on Thursday (today) but will have formal engagements with civil and military officials on Friday. The sources added that the focus of the visit would be the situation in Afghanistan.

The top British diplomat will seek Pakistan’s help in evacuating the remaining British nationals believed to be still in Afghanistan. It is reported that the head of MI6 recently paid a quiet visit to Pakistan and met the Army Chief.

Pakistan sees the visits of foreign ministers of key countries as an opportunity to share its views on Afghanistan and the way forward.

The message from Pakistan is clear that now is not the time to leave Afghanistan alone. During talks with Dutch Foreign Minister Sigrid Kaad, Qureshi reiterated Pakistan’s position that he wanted a comprehensive and broad-based government in Afghanistan.

In a joint news conference, Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that the world should not leave the Afghan Taliban. Qureshi insisted that Afghanistan continue to receive humanitarian and economic assistance. He believed that leaving Afghanistan alone would have disastrous consequences and warned the world not to repeat the mistakes of the past.

Talking to the press, Qureshi said, “We believe a peaceful Afghanistan is paramount with safety of the Afghan people and an inclusive political settlement. Our support and solidarity with the people of Afghanistan at this critical juncture is imperative.”

The Dutch Foreign Minister thanked Pakistan for hosting millions of Afghan refugees for four decades. He said the European foreign ministers would discuss Afghanistan strategy on Friday.

Qureshi said he also discussed bilateral cooperation between Pakistan and the Netherlands in the context of the European Union. “We appreciate the Dutch government’s continued support for our GSP Plus status. Our increase in bilateral trade is significant as the Netherlands is the second largest export recipient from Pakistan in the European Union.”

The Foreign Office said in a statement that the Foreign Minister also received a video call from his Canadian counterpart, Mark Garneau. The two Foreign Ministers reviewed the rapidly changing situation in Afghanistan and discussed the possibility of providing humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan.

During the talks, Qureshi stressed the need for a comprehensive political settlement in Afghanistan and called on the international community to stay engaged with Afghanistan so that it can move forward on the path to development and prosperity after four decades of conflict.

The Canadian Foreign Minister thanked Pakistan for providing support and logistical support to the evacuation process to successfully carry out the mission to rescue Canadian citizens from Afghanistan after the fall of Kabul on August 15.

The Foreign Office said in a statement that Garneau appreciated the role of the Pakistani Foreign Ministry, in particular its Crisis Management Unit, in ensuring the smooth repatriation of Canadian officials and citizens from Afghanistan.

Garneau informed Qureshi that Canada had provided $50 million in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan. Shah Mehmood Qureshi reiterated that Pakistan would continue to provide all possible assistance to evacuate stranded Canadians and provide humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan.

In a bilateral context, the Foreign Minister called on the Government of Canada to relax the visa regime for Pakistani citizens, especially students. He called for a positive review of the Travel Advisory for Pakistan, as well as the United Kingdom and the United Nations and other partners.

Qureshi took to Twitter about his conversation with Garneau. “Reiterated Pakistan’s continued support to evacuate those in need & our commitment to help humanitarian/economic development; Shared importance of inclusive political settlement & for Int’l community to stay engaged,” Qureshi tweeted.

For his part, Garneau said on twitter, “As direct neighbour of Afghanistan, it’s important that we continue to engage Pakistan on these significant regional issues. I thanked him & the govt for its evacuation efforts, we discussed areas of cooperation to promote regional stability.”

Stay tuned to BaaghiTV for latest news and Updates!