Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa and his Afghan counterpart on Sunday agreed to form a joint working group of the two armies, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) announced in a press release.

Gen Bajwa proposed the working group during a discussion with Afghan Army chief Gen Sharif Yaftali on the sidelines of the Quadrilateral Counter-terrorism Coordination Mechanism (QCCM)'s meeting in Tajikistan.

The Afghan Army chief accepted the offer, said the ISPR statement.

The working group will "jointly work and formulate security recommendations for government level discussions aimed at addressing mutual concerns," said the release.

During the discussion, Gen Bajwa highlighted Pakistan's efforts for border security. He termed "dignified repatriation of Afghan refugees" and border security management as key factors for enduring peace.

COAS Gen Bajwa assured his Afghan counterpart of his "fullest cooperation" but made it clear that "Pakistan cannot bring the Afghan war into Pakistan."

Earlier, the senior military leadership of China, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan had signed an outline for a cooperative mechanism at the QCCM meeting in Dushanbe. The mechanism will come into force after its endorsement by the respective governments.

On the occasion, Gen Bajwa had stressed on intelligence sharing and coordinated border management among the four nations and talked about Pakistan's achievements in connection with eliminating terrorist safe havens in the country.