Acting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Sunday described the improvement of ties with Pakistan as a “very positive development in bilateral relations,” the Afghan foreign ministry said in a statement.

Earlier this week, both nations agreed to upgrade their diplomatic relations by exchanging envoys — a key step towards normalising ties after years of strained relations between Islamabad and the Taliban administration in Kabul.

Pakistan on Friday announced its elevation of diplomatic representation in Afghanistan from Charge d’Affaires to Ambassador level, as bilateral ties “move on a positive trajectory.”

According to the statement, Muttaqi spoke to Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar over the phone and discussed upgrading diplomatic relations.

“Muttaqi called it a positive step and expressed hope that the remaining stages would be completed soon,” the statement said. “Both sides expressed that upgrading the level of diplomatic relations would pave the way for expanding cooperation in many areas.”

Meanwhile, the Foreign Office (FO) said that Muttaqi welcomed Pakistan’s decision to upgrade its diplomatic relations to the Ambassador level and informed that Afghanistan has decided to follow suit.

“Both leaders also reviewed the implementation of decisions taken during DPM/FM’s visit to Kabul on 19 April 2025 and vowed to continue working together to establish mutual trust between the two brotherly nations,” the FO said in a statement.

It added that both nations agreed to “work closely” to swiftly finalise a framework agreement for the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (UAP) Railway Line Project for regional connectivity.

Experts believe that the conversation between Dar and Muttaqi indicates that the two sides remain focused on increasing convergence and cooperation in their bilateral interactions.

“After a period of unprecedented friction in the relations for the past three years, the actions by both sides to upgrade diplomatic representation, releasing held goods of Afghan companies at Pakistani ports, addressing impediments in trade and transit and extension of CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor) to Afghanistan are positive and forward-looking measures,” Pakistan’s former ambassador to Afghanistan, Mansoor Ahmad Khan, told Dawn.com.

He added that these decisions should be implemented to “strengthen bilateral relations and make progress for achieving regional connectivity with Central Asia and beyond”.

China has played a key role in the normalisation of relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Both nations made the announcements days after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stated in a statement “to strengthen exchanges and diplomatic contacts late last month.

“Afghanistan and Pakistan expressed a clear willingness to elevate diplomatic relations and agreed in principle to exchange ambassadors as soon as possible,” he said after he hosted Dar and Muttaqi at an informal trilateral meeting in Beijing.

Pakistan-Afghanistan ties have been marred by deep mistrust, cross-border attacks, and sharp disagreements over the presence of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants operating from Afghan territory.

Islamabad has long accused Kabul of harbouring TTP fighters, who were blamed for a 70 per cent increase in attacks inside Pakistan in 2024.

Russia accepts Afghan-nominated ambassador to Moscow

Separately, Russia officially accepted Afghanistan’s nomination of an ambassador to Moscow, the Afghan foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday, as economic and political ties grow between the two sanction-hit nations.

Russia in April suspended its ban on the Taliban, which it had designated for more than two decades as a terrorist organisation, in a move that paved the way for Moscow to normalise ties with the leadership of Afghanistan.

“We hope this new phase will allow both countries to expand cooperation in various fields,” said Muttaqi in a statement.

Diplomats say formally presenting ambassadorial credentials to a foreign head of state signals a step towards recognition.