Composite satellite image of South Asia Photo : Public Domain via Wikimedia
The Heart of Asia Conference concluded in Amritsar, the town on the India-Pakistan border on Sunday, calling for increased cooperation among member countries to cope with the common challenge of terrorism in Afghanistan and South Asian region.
The declaration adopted at the end of the conference – which took place in the midst or Sotuth Asian tensions and differences among regional countries – stated that the conference would help peace and stability in Afghanistan and the region.
The declaration reiterated to implement Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It called for avoidance of intervention in the internal affairs of other countries according to international laws and established norms.The declaration stated that the territorial integrity and sovereignty of all nations would be given equal importance. It also reiterated to abide by the principles regional security and integrity as defined in the UN charter.
Azerbaijan will host the next Heart of Asia Conference in 2017.
The declaration commended Pakistan and Iran for their hospitality in hosting millions of Afghan refugees for over three decades.
The conference welcomed Afghanistan-Pakistan-UNHCR and Afghanistan-Iran-UNHCR Tripartite Commissions on Voluntary Repatriation of Afghan Refugees from Iran and Pakistan, as vital steps in the Solutions Strategy.
Hours after attending the Heart of Asia conference , Adviser to PM on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said on Sunday that India’s efforts to divide Afghanistan and Pakistan will not go far as “we are next-door neighbours”.
“We don’t need any pressure on counter terrorism because we have done more than any other country to eliminate it,” he told reporters in Islamabad as Afghan and Indian leaders seek to blame Pakistan for failures in territories under their control.
“Our relations with Afghanistan stand independently… there is a lot interaction because we are next-door neighbors…India’s efforts to divide us will not go very far.”
Aziz said Afghanistan’s comments against Pakistan were regrettable but understandable because of the intensity of insurgency in the war-torn country. “There is certain amount of anxiety which tells us why such comments came about,” he said.
Pakistan cannot control movement of terrorists without proper border management as there is always unchecked movement across the border, he added. “Afghanistan will have to do on their side as well as we cannot control people from operating inside Afghanistan.”
Justifying his participation in the conference, the adviser said: “We don’t let the bilateral issues mix up with multilateral matters.”
Aziz said he met many officials and leaders on the sidelines of the conference, including foreign ministers of Iran, Turkmenistan and China, as well as Indian NSA Ajit Doval.
Pakistani officials called for addressing the root-causes of militancy including Jammu and Kashmir dispute.
Earlier, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made thinly-veiled references to Islamabad and said inaction against terrorism in the region will encourage terrorists and their facilitators.
“Silence and inaction against terrorism in Afghanistan and our region will only embolden terrorists and their masters,” Modi said as he jointly inaugurated the 6th session of the Ministerial Conference with Afghan President Dr Ashraf Ghani.
“We must demonstrate strong collective will to defeat terror networks that cause bloodshed and spread fear,” Modi added.
