Pakistan urges Afghanistan to prevent terrorists from 'escaping'

Dawn.com Published November 15, 2015

WASHINGTON: Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Asim Bajwa on Sunday urged Afghan authorities to implement "strict surveillance" along the Pak-Afghan border to prevent terrorists from "escaping", Radio Pakistan reported.

“We had preempted that terrorists could flee to Afghanistan to avoid operation Zarb-i-Azb,” he said, stressing that Pakistan has always extended full support for peace in Afghanistan, and will continue to do so "with utmost sincerity".

Addressing media in Washington ahead of Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif's forthcoming visit to the US, he said that the security situation on both sides of the border has improved due to Operation Zarb-i-Azb.

He said General Raheel Sharif's visit to the United States held "great importance" in the changing regional situation and urged Afghanistan to take effective measures to prevent terrorists from fleeing.

COAS General Raheel Shareef left for the United States earlier in the day for a five-day visit, in which he will hold meetings with US Secretary of State John Kerry, along with other civil and military leadership.

The visit — apparently instigated by General Raheel Sharif — comes weeks after Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif met with US President Barack Obama at the Oval Office to discuss many of the same issues said to be on his army chief's agenda, including Afghan peace talks and Pakistan's nuclear ambitions.

Stability in Pakistan's neighbour Afghanistan has spiralled after a Taliban surge in recent months, and Obama announced in October that Washington will keep thousands of soldiers in the country past 2016.

Both Pakistan and Afghanistan have accused each other of harbouring extremists on their lands, blaming the other for not doing enough to prevent acts of terrorism on both sides of the border.

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Faisal

Nov 15, 2015 10:20pm

Someone across the border is desperate to use these terrorist against Pakistan, and to destabilize the peace of Pakistan-Aghanistan.

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Syed Chishti

Nov 15, 2015 10:58pm

There is need to pay attention to this under-mentioned links and its details. Pakistan's COAS General Sharif must get US officials on board that US and Pakistan's interests are common. Pakistan needs US, and US needs Pakistan. Pakistan is nothing without US support, and US cannot achieve its objectives in South Asia without Pakistan, "army chief's agenda, including Afghan peace talks and Pakistan's nuclear ambitions." https://lnkd.in/WiB9Fh https://lnkd.in/ecNGCVW https://www.facebook.com/syed.chishti1 We are at our nations turning point where we will make it, if we take right decisions. The India, Afghanistan, and Pakistan's issues will not be resolved without US support, "Both Pakistan and Afghanistan have accused each other of harbouring extremists on their lands, blaming the other for not doing enough to prevent acts of terrorism on both sides of the border." COAS must take back home at conclusion of his visit the good omens of his this crucial visit that requires US support.

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qureshi

Nov 15, 2015 11:11pm

Come on... Why they will listen to you. They are getting paid for this mess!!!!

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Sunil

Nov 15, 2015 11:40pm

G8 , after more then1 year of operation, you are thinking of this ?

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Montague

Nov 16, 2015 12:49am

If they would have been of any use the situation would have been different.

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Nov 16, 2015 01:29am

Successive Afghan governments propped up by the US Government have proven their incompetence in terms of dealing with governance and national security issues. The US should take responsibility and find a solution to the problems in Afghanistan which it has created because of its impulsive and reckless policies instead of blaming Pakistan for every thing which goes wrong in Afghanistan. The reality is that the Taliban remain popular in most of this backward country and shall remain so in the foreseeable future. The US Government now knows this reality and also has their phone numbers to call so why involve and blame Pakistan? The US should deal directly with Taliban instead of playing games with Pakistan using the propped up regimes in Afghanistan

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NAthan

Nov 16, 2015 01:35am

All the countries to come together to fight this menace

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Gaz

Nov 16, 2015 01:55am

It's good that the General is going to talk an intelligent confident person should be talking to the Americans not NS who cannot give interviews cannot answer difficult questions cannot speak English or talk like a confident person. How on earth people could vote for someone who totally lacks confidence in himself is beyond me.

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4ewsk

Nov 16, 2015 04:03am

@NAthan go ahead bell.

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BRIJ

Nov 16, 2015 05:05am

To monitor the long Afghan Border vigilantly is to expect too much from Afghan Army. Pakistan will have to deploy more Jawans to do that.

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AXH

Nov 16, 2015 05:54am

We want Mullah Fazlullah to be handed over to Pakistan by Afghanistan. His hands are soaked with the blood of the innocent civilians.

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rama

Nov 16, 2015 06:06am

@NAthan Then Pakistan will be which side of the fence ???

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Riaz

Nov 16, 2015 07:05am

There is a miss perception that any Govt exist in Afghanistan.If you ignore pushton then there is no Govt in Afghanistan they are 60% of the population.Mr Ghani is not the real representative of pushton like Karazai

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Mazhar.A.Khan

Nov 16, 2015 08:17am

Well done. You guys are doing fantastic job. Today peace in our country is the result of your galant struggle against the state enemies, the thugs who had killed many innocent. Nation stands behind you inshallah.

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paul

Nov 16, 2015 09:29am

@Faisal Don't do to others that you don't want others to do to you!

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