Islamabad: Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan announced on Monday that his government would allow India to send 50,000 metric metrics of wheat to neighboring Afghanistan through the transit area after finalizing.
Khan, who led the First Apex Committee meeting from Cell Coordination between Afghanistan (AICC) in Islamabad, also took the opportunity to remind the international community about collective responsibilities to support Afghanistan to avoid the humanitarian crisis.
During the meeting, Khan announced Pakistan’s decision to enable 50,000 metric tons of Indian wheat has offered to provide Afghanistan as humanitarian aid to go through Pakistan as soon as modalities are resolved by the Indian side, Radio Radio Pakistan reports.
At present, Pakistan only allows Afghanistan to export goods to India but does not allow other two-way trade through a border intersection.
Last month, India announced 50,000 metric tons of wheat for Afghanistan as a Humanitarian Aid and asked Pakistan to send food grains through the border of the wagah.
Foreign Minister Afghanistan Amir Khan Muttaqi also asked Prime Minister Khan to allow India to transport wheat through Pakistan, showing that the Taliban government was willing to accept humanitarian assistance from India.
India has contributed to the humanitarian requirements of the Afghan people.
This includes providing more than 1 million metric tons of wheat to Afghanistan over the past decade.
Last year India helped Afghanistan with 75,000 metric tons of wheat, the Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar said at the UN high level meeting on the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan in September.
However, there are reports that Pakistan has blocked India’s efforts to provide wheat to the Afghan people, in the midst of a cold in the relationship between New Delhi and Islamabad for Kashmir’s problem.
Khan also ordered sending direct humanitarian aid worth Rs 5 billion consisting of wheat, emergency medical equipment, winter shelter and other supplies to Afghanistan, Radio Pakistan reported.
He instructed all ministries to facilitate Afghans to the maximum and also approved the principle tariff and reduction in sales tax on the export of the Afghan key to Pakistan.
Khan ordered that free Covid vaccination facilities for all Afghans who entered Pakistan from the land border continued.
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National Security Advisor Moeed Yusuf, who is also an AICC organizer, made a detailed presentation to prepare for civil and military leadership in the current economic situation in Afghanistan and the progress carried out by AICC in coordinating national efforts to humanitarian assistance and border facilitation for Afghans.
Prime Minister Khan also directed that bus services between Peshawar and Jalalabad in Afghanistan would be revived to facilitate tourists on both parties.
To further facilitate Afghanistan, the duration of visa will be relaxed so that the visa is given in the most three weeks, the report said.
Khan also instructed the national security advisor to visit Afghanistan to hold a delegation level talk and approve certain areas where direct capacity building support will be given to Afghans.
The meeting was attended by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the Financial Advisor Shaukat Tarin, head of the army of General Qamar Javan Bajawar, and senior officers and senior military.