KABUL - Presidential adviser on cultural affairs, Shah Hussain Murtazawi, has criticized the visit of the Wolesi Jirga speaker to Pakistan, citing an unconfirmed report of Pakistan severing ties with Afghan National Security Adviser HamdullahMohib.
Mohib said the report that Pakistan had severed ties with him quoted an unknown source and the Pakistani government was not expected to do so undiplomatically.
Four days ago, VOA quoted a “diplomatic” source as saying that Pakistan’s official contacts with Mohib had been suspended due to his “insulting remarks” and Islamabad had “strongly protested” and shared the issue with the Afghan government.
About two weeks back, Mohib during a visit in Nangarhar said: “Pakistan has nothing to be proud of, Pakistan is expanding its territory in Afghanistan with the support of a power-hungry group.”
But the NSA later denied something as such had happened. He added that the Afghan government had not yet been officially notified and that if the news became official, the Afghan government would respond diplomatically.
“Cutting off Pakistan’s relationship with us will have little effect because the relationship is not good right now, what can be exemplified to prove a good relationship with Pakistan? “Instead of severing ties with us, it is better for Pakistan to cut ties with terrorist groups,” he added.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry issued a statement on May 17 calling the remarks by the Afghan National Security Adviser “irresponsible” and “baseless allegations”, adding that such remarks undermine trust between Islamabad and Kabul.
Meanwhile, Mir Rahman Rahmani, Speaker of the Wolesi Jirga, left for Pakistan at the head of a parliamentary delegation yesterday (Sunday) and is scheduled to attend an economic meeting called “Pico” today.
About Pakistan severing ties with Mohib and Rahmani visit to Islamabad, Shah Hussein Mortazav wrote on his Facebook page today “When Pakistan imposes political sanctions on a senior official, why another official visits the country? “We must have a single voice against the enemy!”
Meanwhile, Subh-i-Kabul newspaper today under the headline (Tensions in Afghanistan-Pakistan relations; Islamabad restricted 80 percent of Afghanistan flights), wrote that Islamabad, unilaterally and contrary to the memorandum signed in the civil aviation sector, reduced 80 percent of flights with Afghanistan.
According to the source, Pakistan, however, said that the reason for this was to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Mohammad Naeem Salehi, a spokesman for Afghanistan’s Civil Aviation Authority, said Kabul and Islamabad had a joint memorandum of understanding and that any decision should be made in consultation with both sides.
Salehi added: “If Pakistan insists on its unilateral decision and the problem is not resolved, the Civil Aviation Authority and Afghanistan government will take retaliatory action and this means that the flights of PIA planes will also decrease.”
But Salehi told Pajhwok Afghan News that Pakistan had restricted flights not only to Afghanistan but also to other countries due to the coronavirus.
Two years ago, as political tensions between Islamabad and New Delhi escalated, Pakistan closed its airspace to Afghan planes flying to India for weeks. (Pajhwok)