Pakistan making reconciliatory efforts for region: FM

Islamabad: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi Monday said Pakistan is making reconciliatory efforts with utmost sincerity for peace and stability in the region, including the Afghan Peace Process.

He said this during the telephonic conversation with his Finnish counterpart Pekka Haavisto.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Prime Minister Imran Khan has been saying from day one that dialogue among the Afghan leadership, acceptable to the people of Afghanistan, is the only solution to the Afghan problem.

He said intra-Afghan dialogue taking place in Doha is a good omen for peace in Afghanistan and the Afghan leadership should take advantage of this opportunity in taking these negotiations to their logical conclusion.

Qureshi apprised the foreign minister of Finland about the visit of Afghan leaders Abdullah Abdullah, Gulbadin Hikmatyar, and Afghan Velosi Jirga to Pakistan and the positive discussions held during these visits.

The Foreign Minister declared the upcoming conference, being held in Geneva at the end of this month with the cooperation of Finland, the United Nations, and Afghanistan, as vital for durable peace and stability in Afghanistan.

He thanked the Foreign Minister of Finland for inviting him to attend the conference on Afghanistan. He expressed the hope that a strategy for honorable repatriation of Afghan refugees from Pakistan will also be discussed on the occasion.

Both the foreign ministers also agreed to continue the process of bilateral consultation for peace and stability in the region, including the Afghan Peace Process.