Sharif again invites Karzai to visit Islamabad

KABUL (PAN): Pakistani Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif, hours after talks with British Premier David Cameron, phoned President Hamid Karzai on Sunday and invited him to visit Islamabad for talks on issues of mutual interest.

Karzai accepted Sharif’s invitation, the second in less than a week, saying he would visit the neighbouring country at a mutually convenient date, a statement from the Presidential Palace said.

The president thanked Sharif and asked him to send his advisor on foreign affairs, Sartaj Aziz, to Kabul to work together with Afghan officials on firming up a “fruitful agenda” of talks between the two sides.

It was the second the telephonic contact between the two leaders, with the first conversation taking place on June 25 — hours after US Special Representative for Afghanistan James Dobbins arrived in Islamabad.

His trip should yield positive results, Karzai said, referring to the two nations’ quest for peace and stability in the region. The president added the governments in Islamabad and Kabul should heed calls for peace.

Stability in Afghanistan would definitely lead to peace and prosperity in Pakistan, according to the president, who commended Sharif’s efforts at bringing progress to the nuclear-capable South Asian nation.

The Afghans genuinely longed for friendship with Pakistan, the president said, stressing their gesture should be reciprocated and their desire translated into a reality.

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