Pakistan envoy meets Afghan FM Amir Khan Muttaqi in Kabul; discusses delivery of aid

A month after Pakistan's Imran Khan-led government held the Troika Plus meeting in Islamabad, Pakistan's envoy to Afghanistan Mansoor Ahmad Khan met Afghan acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Kabul on Sunday, ANI reported, citing TOLO News. According to local media reports, both the leaders discussed bilateral cooperation and the delivery of humanitarian assistance. 

Pakistani ambassador Mansoor Ahmad Khan met with acting FM Amir Khan Muttaqi and discussed bilateral cooperation. Pakistan has decided that wheat and emergency medicine provided by India can be transported from Wagah port in Pakistan on Afghan trucks to Afghanistan, Tolo News reported.

Notably, the statement about the delivery of 50,000 metric tonnes of wheat and life-saving drugs from the Indian side came after the Afghan government appealed to the Pakistan government to allow the free movement of aid through their soil, PTI reported.

At first, Indian MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said Islamabad refused to entertain the request made by New Delhi. However, after rounds of discussions with Pakistani officials, they agreed to allow the free movement of vehicles carrying wheat and other aid to pass through their region. Bagchi added that India proposed Islamabad to not impose any "irrelevant terms and conditions" on the movement of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.

Second meeting between Pak envoy and Afghan FM in less than two months

This was the second time that the Pakistani envoy met with Muttaqiin in less than two months. Earlier in September, the two met in Islamabad where they discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation particularly facilitating humanitarian, economic and people to people exchange, ANI reported. 

Recently, top diplomats from the United States met with Taliban leaders in Doha. On October 20, Russia had sponsored a high-level meeting with ten countries including, the "top dignitaries" of the Taliban government where they discussed ongoing international efforts to prevent a humanitarian crisis in the already war-ravaged country.

The meeting was also attended by India. Afghanistan has been facing an acute shortage of all kinds of resources including, food, medical, and cash since the Taliban took over the country in mid-August. Since then, a lot of effort has been made by the international community to deliver humanitarian aid. 

(With inputs from PTI/ANI, Image: @ambmansoorkhan/Twitter)