QUETTA: The Taliban on Friday closed a key border crossing with Pakistan while seeking visa-free travel for fellow Afghan nationals to the neighboring country, officials confirmed while talking to Arab News.
The insurgent group captured the strategic border town of Spin Boldak in southern Kandahar province on July 14 after clashes with Afghan border forces, prompting Pakistani authorities to temporarily suspend all trade and travel between the two countries through the Pak-Afghan Friendship Gate.
However, there was a resumption of border activities toward the end of July after the business community in both countries complained they were facing huge losses after dozens of trucks carrying Afghan transit trade goods from Pakistani port cities of Karachi and Gwadar got stuck in the country’s Chaman border town.
“Afghan citizens with Afghan refugee cards or Afghan national identity cards should be allowed to cross into Afghanistan without any restriction,” Haji Wafa, the Taliban shadow governor for Kandahar, said in a statement.
“The crossing will remain closed for pedestrians and transit trade until Pakistani border officials allow border movement from morning to evening and restore trade at the same level where it was before the Taliban took control of the Spin Boldak border crossing,” he added.
A Pakistani paramilitary official Ajab Khan told Arab News on Friday the abrupt closure of the Pak-Afghan border had left a large number of people stranded on both sides of the frontier.
He added the Taliban had blocked the border crossing by placing huge concrete blocks on their side.
“Dozens of people who want to travel to Afghanistan are now stranded in [Pakistani border town of] Chaman due to the Taliban decision,” he said.
The Afghan insurgent faction launched a major military offensive across the country, mounting a serious challenge to the administration in Kabul by capturing several towns and key districts, after the United States announced a complete withdrawal of its forces earlier this year.
According to a Reuters report, the group captured the capital of Nimroz province on Friday where it seized the governor's office, police headquarters and an encampment near the Iranian border.
“The cross-border movements, including the Pak-Afghan transit trade, was resumed by Pakistan in the last week of July after the Taliban took over the Afghan side of the frontier, but the insurgent faction recently voiced its reservations over the border crossing procedures before refusing to allow any movement,” a local official in Chaman, who requested anonymity, confirmed while talking to Arab News.
President Chaman Chamber of Commerce Haji Jalat Khan Achakzai said the border closure had once again created significant problems for the business community in the two countries since trucks loaded with goods were piling up on both sides of the border.
“We have spoken with the business community in Afghanistan, and they are trying to convince the Taliban to reconsider the decision since fruit consignments from Pakistan, particularly grapes, are likely to perish on their way to Afghan markets,” he told Arab News over the phone.
Taliban close Spin Boldak border crossing with Pakistan, seek visa-free travel for Afghans
https://arab.news/gbcb6
Taliban close Spin Boldak border crossing with Pakistan, seek visa-free travel for Afghans
- A Pakistani business leader says Afghan traders are trying to convince the insurgent faction to reconsider its decision
- The Taliban captured the strategic border town of Spin Boldak in southern Kandahar province on July 14 after clashes with Afghan border forces
Pakistan president calls for facilitating trade, business interactions with Iraq
- President Asif Ali Zardari meets Caretaker Iraqi PM Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani in Baghdad
- Zardari calls for closer cooperation between chambers of commerce of both nations, private sector
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari recently called for facilitating trade and business interactions between Pakistan and Iraq to facilitate cooperation in key sectors of the economy between the two countries, Pakistani state media reported.
Zardari arrived in Iraq on Saturday for a four-day visit to the country aimed to deepen Pakistan’s bilateral ties with Baghdad. The Pakistani president met Iraqi Caretaker Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani to discuss practical measures to enhance bilateral cooperation, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Sunday.
According to the Press Information Department, Pakistan’s exports to Iraq totaled $54.29 million in 2024 while imports from Iraq, primarily petroleum products, amounted to $145.46 million the same year. Analysts have noted that these figures are modest, considering the market sizes and mutual interests of both nations.
“He [Zardari] highlighted priority sectors including information technology, agriculture and food security, construction, pharmaceuticals and medicines,” Radio Pakistan said.
“The president also stressed the importance of direct banking channels to facilitate trade, business interaction and the movement of pilgrims.”
Every year, thousands of Pakistani pilgrims travel to Iraq to visit some of the most revered shrines in Shia Islam, including the mausoleums of Ali in Najaf and Hussain in Karbala.
The scale of travel, often involving long stays and cross-border movements, has long posed logistical, security and migration-management challenges for Pakistani authorities and host governments alike.
The president called for improved facilitation for Pakistani pilgrims at immigration points, greater flexibility in emergency travel cases and measures to ease difficulties faced by pilgrims.
Zardari and Al-Sudani agreed on the importance of maintaining regular high-level exchanges to carry forward bilateral engagement. The Pakistani president spoke of Islamabad’s participation in major trade and health exhibitions in Baghdad, noting these engagements as a step toward sustained business-to-business connectivity.
“He encouraged closer coordination between chambers of commerce and the private sector of both countries through regular exchanges and virtual engagement,” Radio Pakistan said.
Zardari expressed satisfaction over the steady progress in bilateral defense ties with Iraq, including ongoing training programs and completed defense deliveries.
“He reaffirmed Pakistan’s willingness to further strengthen defense collaboration in line with Iraq’s requirements and evolving security needs,” the state media outlet reported.
