Pak's long-standing policy on terrorism affecting Afghanistan: Rabbani at UN
United Nations: After India, Afghanistan has cornered Pakistan for promoting terrorism. Afghan foreign minister said that extremism in Kabul is bi-product of Islamabad giving safe havens to terror outfits such as Taliban and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
Addressing the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani said, “The scourge of terrorism and violent extremism affecting his country is the product of a long-standing policy by a neighbouring State to keep Afghanistan unstable.”
“Afghanistan has faced menace of terrorism for several decades now, with its roots located in terrorist sanctuaries and safe havens outside my country,” Rabbani said.
United States President Donald Trump had in August announced new South Asia and Afghanistan Policy, wherein he declared that more troops would be deployed in Afghanistan to fight Taliban.
“Despite being on the receiving end, provocative actions, including continuous violation across the border line, Afghanistan has maintained a principal position of seeking to resolve differences with Pakistan through dialogue, diplomacy and peaceful means”, Rabbani said.
“This is particularly true in case of relations with Pakistan, which unfortunately, have so far failed to respond positively at its own cost, particularly in relations to its global reputation and standing,” he added.
Rabbani welcomed Trump’s new Afghan policy and said that the US' strategy for Afghanistan has generated new hope among its citizens.
“We welcome the fact that the new strategy recognizes the critical need to address the lingering problem of terrorist safe-havens and sanctuaries in our region; and for more determined efforts to end political, logistical and financial support enjoyed by terrorist groups,” he said.
Before concluding his speech, Rabbani said, “I also wish to highlight that the exaggerated claims of Taliban control over some percentage of territory is being used as part of psychological warfare, our security forces have the upper hand against terrorists and extremists group through out the country”.
Last week, Indian External Affairs Minister Susham Swaraj called Pakistan a “pre-eminent export factory for terror”. Swaraj, while speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York on Saturday, asked the neighbour’s politicians to introspect as to why India is recognised globally as an IT superpower.
Indirectly referring to Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi as a hypocrite, Swaraj, responded to the accusations levelled by him and said that all those listening to his speech had only one reaction, “Look who is talking.”
