Gen Bajwa arrives in Kabul to attend Chief of Defense summit

RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has arrived in Afghan capital Kabul to attend Chief of Defense conference, said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on Tuesday.

In a statement the military’s media wing said the army chief will participate in the Chief of Defense Conference.

Chiefs of Defence Conference on peace and stability in Afghanistan will begin in Kabul on Tuesday (today).

United States Central Command Commander General Joseph L. Votel, US top military commander in Afghanistan, Afghan army chief and other top security officials will attend the conference, it said.

In October 2017, Gen Bajwa went to a crucial visit of Kabul, where he held a meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and other senior civilian and military officials.

The ties between two neighboring countries have been marred by deep mistrust and suspicion with both sides accusing each other of not taking action against Taliban insurgents carrying out attacks against each other.

Of late, a high-level Afghan delegation visited Pakistan and held the second round of talks on Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS).

The talks were aimed at bridging the difference of opining between Islamabad and Kabul on key security issues, but failed to make any progress thereof.

In a tweet, Foreign Office spokesman Dr Muhammad Faisal summed up the outcome of the talks, saying more needed to be done to bridge the difference of opinion with regard to APAPPS.