China vows respect for Afghanistan’s sovereignty

KABUL (Pajhwok): The embassy of China in Kabul has spelled out 11 points that clarify the country’s stance Afghanistan.

The embassy said China respected the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan.

A statement from the embassy said China also respected the independent choices made by the Afghan people, their religious beliefs and national customs.

“China never interferes in Afghanistan’s internal affairs, never seeks selfish interests in Afghanistan, and never pursues so-called sphere of influence,” the statement added.

The statement also referred tp 10 more points of China’s stance:

1. Supporting moderate and prudent governance in Afghanistan.
2. Supporting peace and reconstruction in Afghanistan.
3. Supporting Afghanistan in countering terrorism resolutely and forcefully.
4. Calling for greater bilateral and multilateral counter-terrorism cooperation.
5. Working together to fight terrorism, separatism and extremism in Afghanistan.
6. Urging the US to live up to its commitments and responsibilities towards Afghanistan.
7. Opposing external interference and infiltration in Afghanistan.
8. Strengthening international and regional coordination on the Afghan issue.
9. Facilitating a solution to Afghanistan’s humanitarian and refugee issues.
10. Supporting Afghanistan’s fight against narcotics.

The statement said China hoped “Afghanistan could build an open and inclusive political structure, adopt moderate and prudent domestic and foreign policies, and engage in friendly exchanges with all countries especially neighboring countries.”

It stressed the imperative of protecting the basic rights and interests of all Afghan people by the interim Afghan government, including women, children and all ethnic groups.

China promised it would continue to do its best to help Afghanistan with reconstruction and development, as well as promote steady progress in economic, trade and investment cooperation.

“China welcomes Afghanistan’s participation in Belt and Road cooperation and supports Afghanistan’s integration into regional economic cooperation and connectivity that will transform Afghanistan from a land-locked country to a land-linked country,” the statement said.

It also expressed concern over the presence of the “East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), saying it posed a severe threat to the security of China, Afghanistan and the region at large.

It hoped that “Afghanistan would honour its commitment and take more effective measures to crack down on all terrorist forces.

It suggested Afghanistan should be supported in taking comprehensive measures to address both symptoms and root causes of terrorism and prevent the country from again becoming a safe haven, breeding ground and source of terrorism.

The statement criticised the US: “It is a widely-held view in the international community that by seizing Afghanistan’s overseas assets and imposing unilateral sanctions, the US, which created the Afghan issue in the first place, is the biggest external factor that hinders substantive improvement in the humanitarian situation.

“The US should draw lessons from what happened in Afghanistan, face squarely the grave humanitarian, economic and security risks and challenges in Afghanistan, immediately lift its sanctions.

It asked the US to return Afghanistan’s overseas assets, and deliver its pledged humanitarian aid to meet the emergency needs of the Afghan people.

The military interference and democratic transformation by external forces in Afghanistan over the past 20-years had inflicted enormous losses on the country, it noted.”

The statement suggested that “under the new circumstances,” Afghanistan should be a platform for cooperation among various parties rather than geopolitical games.

China also vowed to provide assistance through bilateral and multilateral channels for the Afghan refugees.

“China looks forward to and supports more concrete actions by Afghanistan to counter narcotics cultivation, production and illicit trafficking, and will work with the international community to help Afghanistan with alternative development and crackdown on cross-border drug-related crimes, so as to eliminate the source of narcotics in the region,” the statement concluded.

pr/mud

 

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