Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi has said that the joint military exercises between Pakistan and the United States on Pakistani soil were a source of concern for the region.
In an interview with a Russian media outlet, Muttaqi said that if regional and neighboring countries protect their borders, there will be no problems in Afghanistan.
He said talks between the Pakistani government and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) would be in Islamabad’s interest.
“Pakistan is holding exercises with US forces, working together,” Muttaqi said. “This is a concern for the countries of the region. This is not in the interest of Pakistan and the region.”
Muttaqi also claimed that Daesh does not exist in Afghanistan and the enemies use the group as a tool to discredit Afghanistan.
“Just as Russia is threatened and suffers from Daesh that goes to Russia from outside, if Afghanistan suffers from Daesh, it is Daesh that comes from outside,” Muttaqi said. “So if neighboring countries and the region pay serious attention to this issue and protect their borders, there will be no problems in Afghanistan.”
Muttaqi also expressed concern over the smuggling of synthetic drugs into Afghanistan and stressed regional cooperation to fight it.
The Islamic Emirate official said that after the ban on poppy cultivation in Afghanistan, the price of opium has gone up and poppy cultivation in some neighboring countries has reached tens of thousands of hectares of land.
“The problem we are facing now is synthetic drugs that come from outside and there are different types,” he said. “We are trying to resolve that as well, but the cooperation of neighboring countries is also necessary in this field.”
