ISLAMABAD: Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri confirmed that a two-day peace conference on Afghanistan will be held in Islamabad on Saturday.
Responding to a host of questions during his weekly news briefing in Islamabad on Thursday, he said delegations from Afghanistan will start arriving in Pakistan from Friday.
“Peace in Afghanistan is in Pakistan’s interest as any security situation in the neighbouring country has direct impact on our own security,” Chaudhri said. Without naming, the spokesperson further stated that spoilers should not be allowed to exploit any security vacuum in Afghanistan.
The spokesperson said Pakistan has been hosting over 3 million Afghan refugees for decades and now it is not possible to accept more refugees. “Regional economic activity and connectivity are vital for peace and prosperity of the region, which is directly linked with tranquility in Afghanistan,” he underscored.
In response to another question, he said Pakistan wants to reopen Chaman-Spin Boldak border crossing with Afghanistan to facilitate cross border movement of the people. A day earlier, Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Chaudhry had tweeted that important members of Afghan leadership including Karzai have been invited to the conference. “We hope that this important development will give rise to new hopes for a solution to Afghanistan’s problems,” the information minister had added.
