Pakistan hopes new interim govt in Afghanistan will work for peace: FO

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday expressed the hope that the new political dispensation will work for peace, security and stability in Afghanistan, said Foreign Office in a statement.

“We continue to closely follow the evolving situation in Afghanistan,” said Foreign Office spokesperson Asim Iftikhar Ahmad in a statement.

The spokesperson further said: “We have noted the latest announcement about the formation of interim political set-up in Kabul, which would address the requirement of a governance structure to meet the urgent needs of the people of Afghanistan.”

The FO expressed hope that the new political dispensation will also work towards taking care of the humanitarian and development needs of the Afghan people.

It further said: “Pakistan reaffirms its abiding commitment to a peaceful, stable, sovereign and prosperous Afghanistan.”

The Taliban on Tuesday announced Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhund as the leader of their new caretaker government in Afghanistan.

Chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid also told a press conference that Taliban co-founder Abdul Ghani Baradar will be the deputy leader.

Taliban’s deputy leader Sirajuddin Haqqani will be the acting interior minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi will be the acting foreign minister and political chief Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai will be the deputy foreign minister, he added.

Fazel Akhund has been named chief of the Afghan armed forces and Muhammad Yaqoob Mujahid will be the country’s new defence minister, Mujahid announced.

The cabinet is not complete, it is just acting,” Mujahid said at the Government Information and Media Centre in Kabul.