Pakistan Defense Minister in Kabul Over Shut Border Crossing – The Diplomat

Pakistan’s protection minister was in Afghanistan on Wednesday, assembly with officers there in an effort to resolve this week’s closure by the Taliban administration of a key border crossing between the 2 neighboring international locations, officers stated.

Protection Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif’s journey to Kabul and his assembly with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban-appointed deputy prime minister for financial affairs, comes as tensions have elevated between Afghanistan and Pakistan in current months.

Taliban safety forces on Sunday closed the Torkham border crossing with Pakistan and on Monday traded fireplace with Pakistani border guards. The change wounded a Pakistani soldier. The border crossing has since remained shut, hampering commerce on either side of the troubled boundary.

The Taliban authorities in Kabul stated Torkham was closed due to Pakistan’s alleged refusal to permit Afghan sufferers and their caretakers to enter Pakistan for medical care with out journey paperwork.

For Pakistan, the crossing is an important industrial artery and a commerce path to Central Asian international locations. However Islamabad has additionally accused the Afghan Taliban of offering sanctuary for Pakistani militants whose cross-border assaults into Pakistan have led to a spike in violence within the area.

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Since Sunday’s closure of Torkham, greater than 6,000 vans with items, together with greens, fruit, and different perishable meals objects, have been caught on the Pakistani facet of the border.

Pakistan’s International Ministry confirmed that Asif was in Kabul, saying solely that he was there to debate security-related issues, together with counterterrorism measures. Two Pakistani safety officers, talking on situation of anonymity to debate border points, instructed The Related Press that Torkham’s closure was prime of the agenda.

In Kabul, an announcement issued by Baradar’s workplace about Asif’s go to stated the 2 sides mentioned the present scenario on the crossing.

In accordance with the assertion, Baradar instructed the Pakistani delegation that “mandatory services ought to be supplied for all passengers” at Torkham and in addition at Spin Boldak, one other commerce route positioned to the south, throughout from Chaman in Pakistan’s restive southwestern Balochistan province.

Baradar was additionally quoted as saying “particular services” ought to be supplied for the transportation of sufferers needing emergency medical care.

“The Pakistani facet assured the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan that it could resolve the talked about points and … work shortly on this matter,” the assertion stated. Baradar additionally harassed it was vital “to separate industrial and financial points from political and safety points in order that it doesn’t grow to be prey to politics.”

In the meantime, Ziaul Haq Sarhadi, a director on the Pakistan-Afghanistan joint Chamber of Commerce and Business, deplored the site visitors halt at Torkham.

“Miles after miles you may see vans loaded with varied objects, and the drivers are ready for the reopening of the Torkham border,” he instructed the AP. He stated Afghan merchants had been additionally frightened because the closure has prompted issues on either side of the border.

Closures, cross-border fireplace, and shootouts are frequent alongside the Afghan-Pakistan border. Either side has prior to now closed each Torkham and Chaman for varied causes.

The Taliban seized energy in Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO troops had been withdrawing from the nation after 20 years of conflict. Like the remainder of the world, Pakistan has up to now not acknowledged Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities. The worldwide neighborhood has been cautious of the Taliban’s harsh measures, imposed since their takeover, particularly in proscribing the rights of girls and minorities.