William Gallo VOA News December 4, 2017 KUWAIT CITY, KUWAIT — Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said Monday at the start of talks with visiting U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis that Pakistan is committed to the war against terror. “Nobody wants peace in Afghanistan more than Pakistan,” Abbasi said. He added that the United States
Michael Hughes: Recent efforts to jumpstart a dialogue between the U.S. and Pakistan seem futile given the duo’s irreconcilable differences – especially in two key areas. The U.S. wants Pakistan to hand over the Haqqani Network and other Afghan Taliban while Islamabad would like Washington to dial down its love affair with India. However, it is
Ayaz Gul VOA News / November 30, 2017 ISLAMABAD — Pakistan says high-level discussions “away from public glare” are under way with the United States to bridge differences stemming from the new Afghan strategy U.S. President Donald Trump announced in August. Pakistan did not agree with the U.S. policy because “there was a difference in understanding
Ayaz Gul VOA News / November 29, 2017 ISLAMABAD — Just days before U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is scheduled to visit Pakistan for crucial talks, the top American general in Afghanistan has alleged the Pakistani spy agency continues to maintain ties with the Haqqani terrorist network and allows Taliban leaders to operate out of havens
Ayaz Gul VOA News / November 24, 2017 ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — A suicide blast in eastern Afghanistan killed at least 8 people Thursday and wounded 16 others. Officials said the explosion in Jalalabad, capital of Nangarhar province, ripped through a crowd outside the residence of a former district police commander. A provincial government spokesman, Attaullah Khogyani,
Ayaz Gul VOA News November 19, 2017 ISLAMABAD — Afghanistan defeated Pakistan Sunday, winning their first under-19 cricket Asia Cup final in Kuala Lumpur, offering a rare opportunity for celebrations in a country desperate for a break from relentless rounds of deadly violence. Batting first, the Afghan team scored 248 runs in their allotted 50 overs.
PTI: Afghanistan used to rely only on one transit road, which was through Karachi. That is not the case anymore,” says Afghan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah. Afghanistan would no longer depend on Pakistan for transit trade with the opening of the strategic Chabahar Port, a top Afghan leader has said. Chabahar Port, located in the Sistan-Balochistan province on
Madeeha Anwar VOA News November 11, 2017 WASHINGTON — Pakistan’s Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal recently responded to an inquiry from parliament’s upper house on how slain Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Akhtar Mansoor was able to get a Pakistani passport. Mansoor was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Pakistan’s Balochistan province in May 2016 when he
Ayaz Gul VOA News November 11, 2017 ISLAMABAD — Afghanistan has received an inaugural consignment of wheat from India through an Iranian port, opening a new trade and transit route for the landlocked nation that bypasses neighboring Pakistan. The strategic sea route, officials say, will help improve trade and transit connectivity between Kabul and New Delhi.
Ayaz Gul VOA News November 7, 2017 ISLAMABAD — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Taliban bases in Pakistan pose a “big challenge” to efforts aimed at bringing peace and stability to Afghanistan. Stoltenberg told reporters Tuesday at the alliance’s headquarters in Brussels that he regularly raises the issue in meetings with Pakistani leaders and will continue