Ghani hails regional support for Afghan peace

KABUL on the 101^st Anniversary of Reclamation of Afghanistan’s Independence.

He told Pajhwok Afghan News: “As part of the ongoing high-level exchanges between the leaders of the friendly governments of Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, President Ghani recently sent a thank-you letter to his Sri Lankan counterpart Gotabaya Rajapaksa…”

Ghani appreciated the Sri Lankan leader’s warm congratulatory message to the government and people of Afghanistan on the 101^st Anniversary of Reclamation of Afghanistan’s Independence, which the Afghans at home and abroad celebrated on August 18, 2020.

“We take note of our common values, which underpin our shared efforts for stronger ties. In this light, we are committed to further expanding relations between our two countries,” President Ghani wrote to Rajapaksa.

To that end, the President said: “As the Afghan people have reached a critical point in our efforts for achieving lasting peace and stability, the support by the friendly country of Sri Lanka under your leadership for the Afghan peace process is of great importance, Haidari added.

“Indeed, regional cooperation is the key to addressing the intertwined challenges of terrorism, extremism, and criminality, which confront Afghanistan, while destabilising regional security and stability,” he added.

“With Afghanistan as the land-bridge between South and Central Asia, it is obvious that the imposed war in the country harms the shared interests of the whole region,” the ambassador argued.

When Haidari recently called on Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, he highlighted the importance of enhanced regional economic and security cooperation to exploit common opportunities for business and investment across the region and to work together for securing sustainable peace in Afghanistan based on a consolidation of the country’s hard-earned 19-year gains.

“As two democracies, we immensely count on Sri Lanka’s continued support for the democratic process in Afghanistan and look forward to further building on our strong ties, which also promote win-win regional cooperation for shared peace and prosperity,” added the ambassador.

PK/mud