Foreign Secretary leads Pakistan delegation in Oman for Afghan talks

A delegation of Pakistan, led by Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua, is participating in the four-nation talks on Afghanistan that began in Oman, Muscat from Monday.

The Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG), which includes Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and US, will attempt to revive talks with the Taliban to bring a negotiated peace settlement in the war-torn country.

This is the first meeting of the QCG after Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Akhtar Mansoor's death in a US drone strike in Balochistan in May 2016.

The QCG held its first meeting in Islamabad on January 11, 2016 with the aim to revive the Afghan peace process.

Talking to Voice of America recently, Pakistan's Foreign Minister seemed optimistic regarding the QCG meeting. “The quadrilateral arrangement will again be in operation. So, that is something we still hope will… still work,” he remarked.

On Sunday, Tehmina Janjua and Dr Mohammed Bin Awadh Al Hassan, Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Oman, met for the 6th Round of Pakistan-Oman Bilateral Political Consultations in Muscat.

According to a Foreign Office announcement, bilateral political relations as well as economic and trade cooperation at multilateral forums were discussed.

Both sides expressed satisfaction at the close fraternal relations and progress made thus far. This included sustained and rising trajectory of interaction between political and parliamentary leaderships during 2016-17, exchange of visits between the foreign ministers, chairmen of upper houses as well as participation in the international conferences.

While exploring ways and means to furthering bilateral economic and commercial relations, it was agreed to enhance business-to-business interaction and convene the next session of Joint Economic Commission (JEC) during the first quarter of 2018.

The Foreign Secretary also briefed her counterpart on relations with neighbouring countries, including the situation of human rights in Indian Occupied Kashmir.

Held alternately in Islamabad and Muscat, the mechanism of Bilateral Political Consultations was established in 2005.