Beijing, Mar 16 (PTI) China on Monday called on Pakistan and Afghanistan to hold direct talks to end their armed conflict, as fighting between the two neighbours continued.
China hopes both sides will remain calm and exercise restraint, hold face-to-face talks as soon as possible, achieve a ceasefire at an early date, and resolve their differences through dialogue, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a media briefing here, replying to a question on Beijing’s mediation efforts.
Clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan escalated in the last few days.
Late last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held telephonic talks with Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, and Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, urging them to work out a ceasefire and end hostilities.
According to Afghan media reports, Muttaqi, in his talks with Wang, emphasised Afghanistan’s legitimate right to defend its people and territorial integrity and denied Islamabad’s allegations of hosting Pakistani militant groups.
Pakistan on Sunday said its security forces hit terrorist positions and military targets in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province in overnight strikes.
Media reports said Pakistani air strikes targeted the complex in which Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada resided in Kandahar.
According to the Afghan Defence Ministry, 14 Pakistani military personnel were killed and 11 others wounded in its retaliatory strikes at Pakistan’s border posts on March 14.
The Pakistani strikes came after Wang spoke to Muttaqi on March 13.
Chinese special envoy Yue Xiaoyong is also shuttling between Islamabad and Kabul to mediate between the two countries. China has a trilateral dialogue mechanism with Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Earlier, several other countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkiye, tried to mediate between the two countries.
Meanwhile, Taliban’s Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, in his message on Eid on Monday, urged all sides to refrain from interfering in Afghanistan’s internal affairs.
He said Afghanistan has reached a stage of victory, general security, and stability under the Taliban government.
Through the sacrifices, patience, and perseverance of the Afghan people, “we have reached the stage of victory, general security, and stability,” Akhundzada was quoted as saying by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency. PTI KJV GRS GRS GRS
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.