LONDON: Reiterating his call to the interim government in Kabul to take action against terrorist groups involved in cross-border attacks, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday said that Afghan soil should not be used against Pakistan and its interests under Doha agreement.
The PM was speaking to media outside Avenfield flats where he arrived to meet Nawaz Sharif, the ruling PML-N president, who is also in London for two weeks. Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar was also with the premier. The trio held a meeting in the Park Lane flats and then left for a lunch.
The premier said that it’s a sad reality that the soil of neighbouring Afghanistan is being used for terrorist attacks inside Pakistan.
He said: “Afghanistan is our brotherly country and the two countries are neighbours by nature. We have to live as good neighbours. It’s up to us how we live cordially and in a friendly way. We have asked the Afghan interim govt several times that the Afghan soil should not be used as per the Doha agreement against Pakistan and its interests.”
“Sadly, terror groups such as Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) and other terror groups are operating from Afghanistan. They have killed innocent people inside Pakistan. These sacrifices of Pakistanis will not go in vain. My advice to Afghanistan is to rein in these terrorist groups.”
The PM said he held great talks in Belarus with its leadership. He said: “We had a great discussion in Belarus about Pakistan and Belarus and the opportunities that exist for both countries. We can benefit greatly from the expertise of Belarus in the area of agriculture.”
He said: “Allah has given Pakistan huge mines and mineral resources. Belarus has machinery for this area. We visited a factory for this purpose. We hoped that 150,000 skilled Pakistani workers would get jobs in Belarus, we have developed an understanding.”
When asked about the “Punjab speed,” the premier said: “There was Punjab speed and that was for Pakistan. Now its supreme Pakistan speed. We are working under the vision and leadership of Nawaz Sharif and implementing his vision. It’s a new Pakistan. It’s a progressing Pakistani, advancing and moving forward. This is our destination. We have saved Pakistan from economic default and prayers of the whole nation are involved. We will continue our efforts to protect Pakistan.”
The premier hoped that the Overseas Pakistanis Convention in Islamabad would be a great success. “It has already started and its set to be a historic convention. Overseas Pakistanis will benefit from this. Overseas Pakistanis are coming home for this event.”
PM Shehbaz and FM Dar will leave for Pakistan from London on Monday morning.
