ISLAMABAD – Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Wednesday urged the international community to prevent a humanitarian crisis and economic meltdown in Afghanistan, where the Taliban have announced an interim government.
Addressing virtually the Ministerial Meeting of Neighbors of Afghanistan, he said: “If a humanitarian crisis is prevented and economic stability is assured, then peace can be consolidated and a mass exodus precluded”.
He said renewed diplomatic and international presence in the country would reassure the Afghan people.
FM Qureshi said the urgent provision of humanitarian assistance, with UN and its various agencies playing a lead role, would reinforce the process of confidence-building.
He hoped for an early stabilization of political situation in Afghanistan saying this will lead to normalcy. He stressed the new situation requires discarding old lenses, developing new insights, and proceeding with a realistic and pragmatic approach.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Afghanistan must be enabled to get through this testing time and realize its full potential to advance the common vision of a peaceful, stable, prosperous and inter connected region.
“Afghanistan’s access to its financial resources would be pivotal in preventing a collapse and reviving the economic activity,” he said.
“Our collective voice to the international community will reinforce our message of a peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan, at peace with itself and with its neighbors,” he concluded.
