ISLAMABAD - The Pakistani army chief Gen. Qamar Bajwa has quietly visited Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates as the Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG) talks on Afghan peace kicked off in Muscat of Oman.
According to the Pakistani media reports, the quiet visits by Gen. Bajwa coincided with the launch of the QCG talks by Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, and United States.
No further details have been given regarding the visit of Gen. Bajwa to the two countries.
However, Pakistan’s Dawn News reported that Gen. Bajwa on Saturday met Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai and prime minister of the UAE, as well as other key Emirati leaders.
The paper further added that the army chief thanked the UAE government for extending “humanitarian assistance” to Pakistanis residing in the country, according to Arab News.
According to the report, he later flew to Saudi Arabia to attend the inaugural session of the second International Conference on C4I Solutions at the King Saud University, Riyadh. Organised by the Saudi defence ministry, the theme of this year’s conference was “Alliance Against Terrorism: Strategies and Capabilities”.
Gen Bajwa met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the sidelines of the conference, the report said.
Pakistan is believed to be having a critical role in the Afghan peace process as the observers believe the country has considerable influence on the Taliban group who are believed to having leadership councils in the country.
However, the Taliban group rejected to participate in the QCG meeting which was convened on Monday to revive the Afghan peace talks. (KP)