Islamabad: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Friday, during a briefing told Senate panel that Pakistan would suggest a power-sharing or stabilization formula for Afghanistan to avoid a civil-war-like situation and avoid any other major happening related to terror and destabilization of the region.
Briefing the members of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that Pakistan is already managing the major incoming of Afghan refugees in its limited resources and could not deal with further destabilization.
“We do not want Afghan refugees here as they should stay in their country,” he said and added that they even want three million refugees currently in Pakistan to return to their homeland. Shah Mahmood Qureshi further warned that in the case of the Afghan Taliban strengthening across the border, TTP could also increase its influence and activities and that could bring a major setback for Pakistan.
He further stated that Turkey had an important and vital role in the Afghan peace process and said that better initiatives were taken under the umbrella of the Istanbul peace process. The foreign minister further added that they had a better relationship with Iran and border markets have been setup on the Pakistani side to improve trade ties between the two sides.
Speaking during the meeting, National Security Adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf said that they want the end of violence in Afghanistan in order to prevent any back lash on Pakistani soil. He further warned that if refugee arrival was not stopped then it could lead to the arrival of TTP elements in Pakistan in their disguise. “The situation in Afghanistan is going out of our hands,” NSA Moeed Yusuf said.
