Afghanistan today launched a stinging attack on Pakistan for aiding terrorist groups. Speaking at the Council debate on Conflict Prevention and Sustaining Peace on Tuesday, country’s Permanent Representative Mahmoud Saikal asked the Security Council to take action on governments promoting extremist violence.
“The Security Council can devise a method to identify elements in some 'state institutions' (that) facilitate violence and extremist activities by non-state proxies as a means to advance their foreign policy agenda," Saikal said.
"The cycle of violence and insecurity in Afghanistan, and our part of the world is inextricably linked to the presence of sanctuaries and safe-havens in the region, from which extremist groups are sustained and enjoy an incessant flow of political, financial, material and logistical support for the continuation of their malicious activities," Saikal added.
The reaction from Afghanistan comes a day after an international meeting in Islamabad took place to pave way for peace talks between Kabul and Taliban.
Speaking about Monday’s meet in Islamabad, the official said that that interactions with ‘armed groups active in his country should have Kabul's approval’.
"Any kind of talks on the situation in my country has neither any value nor legitimacy without the participation and approval of our government which is the most democratically elected administration in the history of our nation," Saikal said.
Without naming Islamabad, he added, "We have expressed strong reservations in regards to open declarations by some in our region of their contacts with armed opposition groups active in Afghanistan, conducted without the consent of the Afghan government."
This is not the first time when Afghanistan has expressed concern over such a meeting over the conflict. The landlocked country had in past accused Pakistan of trying to forge an alliance to counter an Indian-Afghan partnership.
With IANS Inputs
