KABUL, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said Ankara wants durable peace in the war-torn Afghanistan.
Erdogan expressed these views during a meeting with Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr. Abdullah Abdullah in Istanbul.
On Thursday, CEO Abdullah arrived in Turkey on a two-day official visit at the invitation of President Erdogan.
“Afghanistan and Turkey have strong ties throughout the history and peace and stability in Afghanistan is very important for Turkey”, a statement from the CEO office quoted the Turkish leader as saying.
Erdogan welcomed the inauguration of the new Afghanistan parliament and termed it another step forward toward strengthening democracy.
The Turkish president said his country supported the ongoing peace efforts in Afghanistan and favored a durable, just and implementable peace in Afghanistan, stressing the need for all parties’ commitment in this regard.
Meanwhile, the Turkish leader said trade and transit volume between the two countries was unsatisfactory and should be increased.
“Turkish firms have invested in Afghanistan and this trend continues. I hope that Afghanistan will create more environments for these companies’ investment and we are ready to regulate our exports and imports based on Afghanistan’s needs,” he explained.
Meanwhile, Abdullah said Afghanistan-Turkey relations were based on friendship, partnership and religious, cultural and historic ties.
He called Turkey a strategic partner of Afghanistan. “Serious efforts are ongoing by the United States to achieve peace in Afghanistan. As part of these efforts, the US and Taliban talks are ongoing,” Abdullah said.
“The Afghan government and people are committed to a just peace, but the Taliban are still a hurdle to peace because they are not ready for intra-Afghan and inclusive talks with participation of the Afghan government and the people.”
He said the Afghan government was committed to holding a transparent and trusted presidential election and the country’s Independent Election Commission was making effort to achieve that goal.
Abdullah said he welcomed Turkey’s willingness to increase its investment in Afghanistan and vowed practical steps through relevant offices in this regard.
sa/ma
