May 11 , 2015
NewsPM, army chief to visit Afghanistan on Tuesday
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Army Chief General Raheel Sharif will embark on a key visit to Afghanistan on May 12 (Tuesday), a meeting of top civilian and military leaders decided on Monday.
“Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif will visit Afghanistan on 12 May 2015, at the invitation of President Ashraf Ghani,” said a statement from the Foreign Office.
Today’s high-level meeting, chaired by the prime minister, was attended by the army chief, Chief of General Staff (CGS) Gen Zubair Mahmood Hayat, PM's special advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, PM's Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry, and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar.
During the meeting, focused on Pakistan's relationship and strategic cooperation with Afghanistan, it was decided that the prime minister and army chief will visit the neighbouring country on May 12 at the invitation of the Afghan president.
The premier will meet his Afghan counterpart Ashraf Ghani and Afghanistan's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah in Kabul, said the foreign office.
Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry, the prime minister's Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs Tariq Fatemi, and other senior officials will accompany the two on the visit to Kabul.
“During the visit, the Prime Minister will have tete-a-tete with President Ashraf Ghani, who will also host a lunch for the Prime Minister. Other engagements of the Prime Minister will include a meeting with the Afghan Chief Executive, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah and delegation-level talks with the Afghan side,” said a foreign office statement.
"The Prime Minister's visit to Afghanistan would further strengthen the positive momentum in bilateral relations and help intensify common endeavours in the pursuit of durable peace, stability and prosperity in the region," it said.
This will be the prime minister’s second visit to Afghanistan and the first after the installation of the elected government in Kabul. PM Sharif previously visited Afghanistan on 30 November, 2013.
Courtesy www.thenews.com.pk