ISLAMABAD, April 17 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan and Afghanistan have found a new path in their warm up bilateral relations, particularly with the formation of a high level joint peace and reconciliation commission to push the peace process in the war- shattered country.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani Saturday agreed to establish the two-tier Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Commission for facilitating and promoting reconciliation and peace.
The first tier of commission will include the chief executives, foreign ministers along with chiefs of the military and intelligence services of the two countries while the second tier will comprise senior officials of foreign ministries, military and intelligence services.
Chairman of Afghanistan's High Peace Council, Professor Burhanuddin Rabbani, welcomed the establishment of the Afghanistan- Pakistan Joint Commission for facilitating and promoting reconciliation and peace. Rabbani, an ethnic Tajik and former Afghan President, who had always been critical of Pakistan's role but his visit to Pakistan in January highlighted Pakistan's key role in the Afghan reconciliation process.
The commission reflects a positive change in bilateral relations as now Afghan leadership recognized Islamabad's role in the reconciliation process when the American troops are set to begin withdrawal of its forces in July and Afghan forces will gradually take over the security responsibility, analysts said.
Pakistan's role is considered as a key to Afghan reconciliation as the country still has influence on the Afghan Taliban. Islamabad had announced in February last year that it has reached the Afghan Taliban, the declaration was welcomed by certain quarters as Pakistan is thought to be the only country to convince the Taliban to come to the negotiation table.
Prime Minister Gilani's visit to Afghanistan, the second in four months, was unique as for the first time the top military leadership joined the PM entourage to tell the world community that the political and military leadership are united.
The U.S. and Afghan authorities had been critical of the role of Pakistan on Afghan issues in the past. And they even accused elements in Pakistan's military establishment of supporting Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan. A White House report accused Pakistan of avoiding "direct conflict" with al-Qaeda and Afghan Taliban in North Waziristan tribal region.
Gilani's stand that Islamabad will back the Afghan-led reconciliation process may be welcomed in Afghanistan as Afghans are very sensitive about any foreign intervention in its internal affairs. The announcement may also help in removing the mistrust among the Afghans about Pakistan's policies.
There is another logic behind the fast growing high level interaction between Pakistan and Afghanistan to counter what Islamabad has described as a new "great game" in Afghanistan. Pakistani leaders have not publicly defined the great game but political analysts are of the opinion that it is the U.S. intentions for future to use Afghan soil against Iran and other countries.
The U.S. quest for permanent bases in Afghanistan has also raised many questions as to why Washington is looking for permanent bases if President Obama has announced a phased withdrawal. People in Pakistan and Afghanistan still remember the U.S. regional role in the past that it had turned back to the region after the withdrawal of former Soviet forces in 1989.
The economic aspect of Gilani's day-long visit to Afghanistan was also very important when he gave reference to several important mega projects, including trans-regional projects, such as the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India Gas Pipeline, building of electricity transmission lines, enhancing physical connectivity by building or upgrading requisite infrastructure, as well as expediting the implementation mechanisms for the Afghanistan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement, that need to be fast- tracked.
Source-Xinhua
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