ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi met Pakistan’s newly appointed ambassador to Afghanistan, Mansoor Ahmad Khan, on Monday and said he hoped the envoy would help strengthen relations between the two neighbors.
“Peace in Afghanistan is vital for peace and stability in the region,” the foreign minister said as he discussed Pak-Afghan relations and the Afghan peace process with Khan.
Qureshi congratulated Khan on his appointed and said he had been given the new responsibilities in view of his “excellent services.”
“You are going to assume your responsibilities as an ambassador at a time when Pakistan is facing many challenges both internally and externally,” the FM said, adding that peace in Afghanistan was vital for regional stability and that he hoped Khan’s appointment would “help further strengthen Pak-Afghan bilateral relations.”
Khan has previously served as Pakistan’s ambassador to Vienna.
Late last week, the Afghan government named a career diplomat, Najibullah Alikhil, as its new ambassador to Pakistan, to replace Atif Mashal who resigned in July this year.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have both named new ambassadors at a time when key intra-Afghan talks between the Kabul government and the Afghan Taliban are about to begin.
Islamabad’s role is considered vital for arranging these talks.
Peace in Afghanistan vital for regional stability, Pakistani FM tells new Kabul envoy
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Peace in Afghanistan vital for regional stability, Pakistani FM tells new Kabul envoy
- Qureshi meets Pakistan’s new ambassador to Afghanistan Mansoor Ahmad Khan
- Last week Kabul named career diplomat Najibullah Alikhil as its new ambassador to Pakistan
Pakistan issues over $7 billion sukuk in 2025, nears 20 percent Shariah-compliant debt target
- Finance Adviser Khurram Schehzad says this was the highest-ever Sukuk issuance in a single calendar year since 2008
- Pakistan’s Federal Shariat Court ordered in 2022 the entire banking system to transition to Islamic principles by 2027
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Finance Adviser Khurram Schehzad on Monday said the country achieved a landmark breakthrough in Islamic finance by issuing over Rs2 trillion ($7 billion) sukuk this year, bringing it closer to its 20 percent Shariah-compliant debt target by Fiscal Year 2027-28.
A sukuk is an Islamic financial certificate, similar to a bond, but it complies with Shariah law, which forbids interest. Pakistan’s Federal Shariat Court (FSC) had directed the government in April 2022 to eliminate interest and align the country’s entire banking system with Islamic principles by 2027.
Following the ruling, the government and the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) have undertaken a series of measures, including legal reforms and the issuance of sukuk to replace interest-based treasury bills and investment bonds.
“In 2025, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) through its Debt Management Office, together with its Joint Financial Advisers (JFAs), successfully issued over PKR 2 trillion in Sukuk,” Schehzad said on X, describing it as “the highest-ever Sukuk issuance in a single calendar year since 2008 by Pakistan.”
Pakistan made a total of 61 issuances across one-, three-, five- and 10-year tenors, according to the finance adviser. The country also successfully launched its first Green Sukuk, a Shariah-compliant bond designed to fund environment-friendly projects.
He said the Green Sukuk was 5.4 times oversubscribed, indicating investor demand was more than five times higher than the amount the government planned to raise, which showed strong market confidence.
“The rising share of Islamic instruments in the government’s domestic securities portfolio (domestic debt) underscores strong momentum, growing from 12.6 percent in June 2025 to around 14.5 percent by December 2025, clearly positioning the MoF to achieve its 20 percent Shariah-compliant debt target by FY28,” Schehzad said.
“This milestone also reflects the structural deepening of Pakistan’s Islamic capital market, sustained investor confidence, and the strengthening of sovereign debt management.”
He said Pakistan was strengthening its government securities market by making it more resilient, diversified, and future-ready, supported by a stabilizing macroeconomic environment, a disciplined debt strategy, and a clear roadmap for Islamic finance.
