Former senator Saeed proposes coalition of seven countries for Afghanistan’s security — Dawn

Former senator Mushahid Hussain Syed proposed a multilateral diplomatic format involving seven states at a conference in Islamabad, Pakistan, to address security challenges and cross-border instability related to Afghanistan. As Dawn reports, he proposed involving Pakistan, Iran, China, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Russia in this format.

Regional diplomatic format

Syed delivered a keynote address at an international conference on Afghanistan’s situation and paths to peace, organized by the International Parliamentarians Congress. He called for replacing military rhetoric with active regional diplomacy and prioritizing civilian ties between countries.

According to the former senator, lasting peace in Afghanistan is important for Pakistan’s ambition to become a regional connectivity hub. He noted that Pakistan is seeking to develop trade, economic and energy ties, as well as infrastructure routes through ports, pipelines, roads and railways to Central Asia, Iran, Turkey and Afghanistan.

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Terrorism and people-to-people contacts

Syed said that the main problem in relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan is terrorism, which, according to him, originates from Afghan territory and destabilizes Pakistan and Afghanistan’s other neighbors. He also stressed that political differences with the authorities in Kabul should not harm Pakistan’s ties with the Afghan population.

The former senator supported a people-centered approach, including maintaining contacts among businesspeople, traders and students, as well as in medical tourism. He recalled that Pakistan had hosted Afghan refugees for four decades and called for preventing the weakening of ties in trade and education.

Proposal for a Peace Council

The conference also heard a proposal by Russian professor Vladimir Sotnikov to establish a Peace Council involving Russia and Afghanistan’s six neighbors to develop a joint strategy for countering terrorism. The event was attended by delegates from China, Russia, Tajikistan and Pakistan, as well as representatives of the Afghan diaspora.