ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday reopened a key trade route with neighboring Afghanistan after a closure of almost four years.
Traders in both countries welcomed the move, and expressed hope that it will increase cross-border trade.
Pakistan closed the Ghulam Khan border crossing in June 2014 after its military launched a major offensive against Pakistani and foreign militants in North Waziristan. The area has been almost completely cleared of armed groups.
Ghulam Khan was reopened on Friday “for trial operations,” Pakistani official Kamran Afridi told Arab News. Four trucks carrying almost 240 tons of cement entered Afghanistan from Pakistan, he added.
“The decision to resume trade via Ghulam Khan was taken in the national interest,” he said. “It will help in the development of North Waziristan, and will provide new job opportunities.” Reviving trade will pave the way for better bilateral relations, Afridi added.
Pakistani and Afghan traders expressed hope that all other border crossings will reopen. “There should be no restrictions on cross-border trade,” Zubair Motiwala, chairman of the Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PAJCCI), told Arab News.
He called for a liberal visa regime for Pakistani and Afghan traders, and said trade should be separated from security and political issues.
Khan Jan Alokozai, co-chairman of PAJCCI, told Arab News: “We welcome Pakistan’s decision to open a major trade route. It will not only boost trade activities, but also promote people-to-people contacts.”
He added: “I’m confident that the decision will also help reduce political tension, as Pakistan has conveyed a positive message to Afghan traders and people.”
Military, local administration and customs officials gathered at Ghulam Khan to welcome Pakistani traders and see them off at the crossing point, Afridi said. Afghan trucks “need a few days for preparation” before they arrive in Pakistan, he added.
Bilateral trade has decreased to nearly $1.2 billion from $2.6 billion in less than two years, Motiwala said earlier this month.
Pakistan reopens key trade route with Afghanistan
Pakistan reopens key trade route with Afghanistan
Peace can only prevail if Afghanistan renounces support for ‘terrorism’— Pakistan defense chief
- Pakistan’s chief of defense forces visits South Waziristan district bordering Afghanistan
- Pakistan says has killed 481 Afghan Taliban operatives since clashes began last Thursday
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir said on Wednesday that peace with Afghanistan can only prevail if Kabul renounces support for “terrorism” and “terrorist” organizations, the military’s media wing said as the two countries remain locked in conflict.
Fighting between the two neighbors, the worst in decades, broke out last Thursday night after Afghan forces attacked Pakistan’s military installations along their shared border. Afghanistan said its attacks were in response to earlier airstrikes by Pakistan against alleged militant hideouts in its country.
Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of sheltering militant outfits such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on its soil who have launched attacks against Pakistani civilians and security forces in recent years. Kabul denies the allegations.
Munir visited Wana town in Pakistan’s South Waziristan district to review the security situation and troops’ operational preparedness at the Afghan border, the Pakistani military’s media wing said in a statement.
“The Field Marshal reiterated that peace could only prevail between both sides if the Afghan Taliban renounced their support for terrorism and terrorist organizations,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.
The military chief said the use of Afghan soil by militant outfits to launch attacks against Pakistan was unacceptable, vowing that “all necessary measures” would be taken to neutralize cross-border threats.
During the visit, Munir was briefed by military commanders about ongoing intelligence-based operations and measures being taken by the military to manage the border with Afghanistan.
He was also briefed about “Operation Ghazab Lil Haq” or “Wrath for the Truth,” the name Pakistan has given to its military operation against Afghan forces, the ISPR said.
The Pakistani military chief spoke to troops deployed in the area, praising their vigilance, professional conduct and high morale, the ISPR said.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Wednesday that the military has killed 481 Taliban operatives, injured more than 690 and destroyed 226 Afghan checkposts since clashes began.
Arab News has been unable to verify claims by both sides about the damages they claim to have inflicted on each other.
Afghanistan has signaled it is open for dialogue but Pakistan rejected the offer, saying it would continue its military operations till its objectives were achieved.
Since the conflict began, diplomatic efforts have intensified with several countries, including global bodies such as the European Union and United Nations, urging restraint and calling for talks.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif that Ankara would help reinstate a ceasefire, the Turkish Presidency said on Tuesday, as other countries that had offered to mediate have since been hit by the conflict in the Gulf.
