ISLAMABAD – The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, is visiting Pakistan, today (Thursday).
Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi will hold talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani focusing on developments in Afghanistan and Pakistan-Qatar relations.
During the visit, the Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs will call on other dignitaries as well.
Pakistan and Qatar enjoy close, cordial ties rooted deep in shared faith and values. The two countries closely collaborate on regional and global issues of common interest. Qatar is home to more than 200,000 hard working Pakistani expatriates contributing to national development and economic progress of both countries.
The visit of His Excellency Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani will add momentum to bilateral cooperation and strengthen coordination on key regional and international issues.
A day earlier, FM Qureshi asked the world to abandon “old lenses” and adopt a “realistic and pragmatic” attitude to Afghanistan on Wednesday.
He made the remark one day after the Taliban established an interim government, which attracted condemnation from Western nations for rejecting calls for a more inclusive administration.
He also recommended that the Taliban-run Afghanistan be invited to a regional conference of six countries to assist the country to avoid a humanitarian and economic catastrophe.
Qureshi attended two important Afghanistan meetings. First, he held a virtual conference of Iran’s, China’s, Uzbekistan’s, Turkmenistan’s, and Tajikistan’s foreign ministers. Later, he attended a meeting co-hosted by US Secretary of State John Kerry and German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.
Qureshi’s message was clear in both meetings: the world needs to embrace the new reality and move forward appropriately.
Despite the fact that he did not say so, his carefully worded speech implied that Pakistan wanted the international community to cooperate with the Afghan Taliban administration.
“The new situation requires discarding old lenses, developing new insights, and proceeding with a realistic and pragmatic approach,” he told the virtual meeting.
Pakistan’s attempts to gain support for Afghanistan’s new administration come from its concerns of an economic collapse and humanitarian catastrophe of the international community abandons the neighboring country.
