Afghan interior minister's visit met with optimism

Afghan and Pakistani officials and experts are optimistic that the ongoing visit of a high-ranking official Afghan delegation led by Interior Minister Ali Ahmed Jalali will improve bilateral ties strained by the ransacking of the Pakistani embassy in the Afghan capital, Kabul, earlier this month. "This is important, and we will look into ways and means of strengthening our cooperation and coordination in the fields of internal security and the fight against terrorism," Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Masood Khan told IRIN on Wednesday. Khan maintained that there was no border dispute between the two neighbouring Muslim nations. But recently Pakistani-Afghan relations hit a further low after protests over the alleged cross-border movement of Pakistani military resulted in the ransacking of its embassy in Kabul. The Durand Line, the 2,400 km long border between the countries remains poorly marked and porous. Although Afghan President Hamid Karzai promptly apologised to his Pakistani counterpart over the incident, the event left bitter feelings. On 17 July a tripartite commission comprising Pakistani, Afghan and US military and diplomatic officials met in Kabul to resolve the issue. "Now a subcommittee has been formed, which will visit the area and address concerns," Khan said. Khan also backed President Karzai's recent call for friendship, improved trade and business links between the two countries, and a civilised relationship based on mutual confidence, in an interview with a British paper. "We support and endorse this. The context of the civilised relationship could be that we avoid making statements, which can be misinterpreted and misunderstood." Experts also attached hopes to the visit. "This will be a confidence building measure after the recent unfortunate incidents," Afghan political expert Babrak Shinwari told IRIN from the northeastern Pakistani city of Peshawar. "I am optimistic that Jalali will achieve most of his objectives," he said, adding that the post-11 September situation in the region demanded regional cooperation from the two US allies in the war against terrorism. Afghan diplomats also shared such views. "The visit signifies the desire of the Afghan people for normal relations with Pakistan," an Afghan diplomatic source, asking not to be named, told IRIN. "A majority of Afghans were not happy with what happened to Pakistan’s diplomatic mission in Kabul and they were desperate to normalise relations," he said. About 1.5 million Afghan refugees still live in Pakistani cities and some 200 refugee villages scattered around the country. The source added that Afghans expected Pakistan to assume a positive role in the ongoing reconstruction effort in their country. "For us the major achievement would be to set a precedent that the two neighbours can resolve their differences through dialogue," he said.