Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Wednesday hosted the first ministerial meeting of Afghanistan’s neighbours since the Taliban took over in Kabul, saying that even though the situation in the war-weary country is “complex and fluid”, its “new reality” required the world to discard “old lenses” and proceed with a “realistic approach”.
Qureshi issued a series of tweets as he chaired the first virtual meeting of Foreign Ministers of China, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan - the neighbours of Afghanistan. “The situation in Afghanistan remains complex and fluid. We hope the political situation stabilises leading to normalcy soon. The new reality requires us to discard old lenses, develop new insights and proceed with a realistic/pragmatic approach,” he said in one of his tweets.
The meeting comes a day after the Taliban unveiled a hardline interim government led by Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhund, with key roles being shared by high-profile members of the insurgent group, including a specially designated global terrorist of the dreaded Haqqani Network as the interior minister.
He said that at the centre of the endeavours must remain the well-being of the Afghan people, who have suffered enormously due to conflict for over 40 years.
“In the wake of recent developments, the key priorities are to prevent a humanitarian crisis and to take steps to prevent economic meltdown,” he said.