US Expresses Approval Over PM Imran’s Visit to Kabul

On Friday, the United States stated that they were pleased to see that Prime Minister Imran Khan had visited Kabul. The trip had been arranged to showcase that the country is fully committed to ensuring peaceful ties with Afghanistan. 

On Thursday, the PM had made his day-long visit to Pakistan’s neighboring country. While in Afghanistan, he pledged in front of the general public that Pakistan will cooperate and do everything possible to assist the country in reducing the spiraling violence. He also added that the two countries together will restore lasting stability and peace in the war-torn country. 

The US State Department took to Twitter to express that they were pleased with this statement of the Prime Minister. They said that they approved of the commitment that Pakistan was showing to ensure peace. They also praised Khan for cooperating with the war-torn country regarding security, trade, regional connectivity, and refugees. 

They went on to add that harmony and friendship between the two countries was a sign that stability will prevail in the entire region. 

PM Imran’s visit is being highly publicized and is said to be the highest-profile visit to Kabul by a Pakistani official ever since the peace talks. These talks were a string of conversations between the Afghan government and Taliban held in the Qatari Capital of Doha. 

The visit came just a few days after the Pentagon made an announcement. It said that US military personnel in the war-torn country will be reduced to 2,500 from 4,500 in the middle of the month of January. 

Earlier on Friday, the Prime Minister had talked about his visit to Kabul and said that it was just another step towards showing Afghanistan that Pakistan is determined to uphold peace with them and ensure cooperation. 

The premier also tweeted about his visit in two parts. According to him, peace in the war-torn country can only be restored through political means. He went on to say that no amount of military solutions could bring stability in Afghanistan. 

While micro-blogging, he stressed on the fact that Pakistan will stand by the country and help them use political dialogue to deal with the violence at hand. PM Imran stated that he has never been a believer of military solutions and thus, relies on political means only. 

The Afghan Presidential Palace gave Imran Khan a warm welcome when he arrived in Kabul. He was treated with utmost respect. In fact, the president of Afghanistan himself had come to receive the Prime Minister when he reached the Presidential Palace. It is located in the heart of the capital city of the country. 

The premier was also given a guard of honor, which was presented to him by a contingent of the Afghan forces. 

Haneef Atmar, the Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs in Afghanistan, along with Umer Daudzai, the Special Representative for Pakistan from Aghanistan, came to receive Imran Khan at the Hamid Karzai International Airport. Mansoor Ahmad Khan, the ambassador to Afghanistan from Pakistan, and various embassy officials also accompanied the Prime Minister.