At least 40 Taliban killed along with 16 ISIS militants

This week, at least 40 Taliban were killed in Afghan security operations conducted in Chora district of Uruzgan, Central Ghazni and Helmand provinces. Sixteen ISIS militants, including seven Pakistani nationals reportedly, were killed in Nazian and Kot districts of Nangarhar. A suicide bomber packed with explosives, on Monday, ran into a crowded minibus in Kabul, killing one and wounding 23 persons. It was the second severe attack in Afghan capital within the margin of a few days. The following day, two cops were shot by unidentified gunmen in Kabul. Meanwhile, 3 US soldiers also got injured in attacks on US forces in Nangarhar as a reaction of the counter-terrorism operations in the area.

International efforts to seek a solution to the Afghan conundrum

Russia indicated last month that at some stage it would also make efforts in persuading the Taliban to engage in the consultative dialogue and discussions over Afghan peace process in a bid to make it more inclusive. Afghanistan, however, disagrees with the idea, for the time being at least, as this would effectively legitimize the insurgent group and undermine the elected Afghan Government. Contrary to Kremlin’s approach, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg still considers Taliban as the real threat to Afghanistan’s peace. This divergence in approaches is likely to make any energies futile in achieving peace in the war-ravaged country.

Meanwhile, two US senators, John McCain and Lindsay Graham, urged the US administration to intensify their fight against terrorism in Afghanistan on the same lines as it is confronting the ISIS, claiming that the whole of Afghanistan may also be lost as the Afghan government had lost 15% of its territory to insurgents since last year. Earlier this week, the Chinese Government also reassured the Afghan Government and its people that China will continue to steadfastly support the Afghan Government’s fight against terror. China’s Foreign Ministry conveyed these views on March 10 while denouncing the attack at Sardar Mohammad Daud Hospital in Kabul.

Islamabad and Kabul face to face in London to defuse tensions

The United Kingdom employed its old-fashioned classic diplomacy when it invited high-level officials from Pakistan and Afghanistan in a dialogue this week in an attempt to break the ice between the two neighbors whose relations had become strained especially following the abrupt closure of Pak-Afghan border by the former on February 17, 2017. The National Security Advisor of UK, Sir Mark Lyall Grant, hosted the one to one meeting between representatives of Kabul and Islamabad in London. The Prime Minister Adviser on Foreign Affairs, Sartaj Aziz, from Pakistani side met with Afghanistan’s National Security Adviser, Hanif Atmar, on Wednesday and Thursday. The British Foreign office refused to comment on the meeting, but it is believed that the two sides listened to each other’s grievances sensibly. Officials from both sides agreed to engage in a healthy dialogue to resolve their bilateral issues. The UK is since optimistic to defuse tensions concerning the two nations.

Earlier this week, Afghanistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Mahmoud Saiqal, officially complained to the UN Security Council against alleged violations of Afghanistan’s territorial integrity by Pakistan. Two days later, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan is reported to have summoned the Pakistani envoy to question him about the alleged obstinate artillery shelling and sporadic airspace violations of the Pakistani military choppers.

Officials of Pak-Afghan Joint Chambers of Commerce Call for Immediate Opening of the Pak-Afghan Border  

Amid rising tensions in Afghanistan-Pakistan relations, a delegation of Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Chamber of Commerce, comprising businessmen from Pakistan and Afghanistan urged the Pakistan Government to immediately open the border at least until all the stranded cargo from Karachi to the border is cleared. The joint delegation met with the National Security Advisor, retired Lt. Gen Nasser Khan Janjua, Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir, Chairman NA Standing Committee on Commerce and Trade, among other high-level government officials, to discuss the early restoration of transit and bilateral trade between the two neighbors. Business leaders present at the meetings mentioned huge losses to trade and industry that have resulted following the border closure. These meetings were convened by the Center for Research and Security Studies in partnership with WPSO, its Afghan counterpart, as part of CRSS’ track 2 initiative called Beyond Boundaries which focuses on addressing the trust deficit between Afghanistan and Pakistan and improving their relations through linkages of the civil society, business communities and political/security groups.

The Prime Minister’s Advisor on Foreign Affairs, Sartaj Aziz, while addressing an Afghan media delegation in Islamabad on Tuesday also reiterated the need for restoring trust between the two neighbors, while adding that a “peaceful and stable Afghanistan” was certainly in the interests of Pakistan.

Central Asia and South Asia 1000 (CASA 1000) Power Project to Begin in Afghanistan Next Year

On economic front, the Afghan Ministry of Water and energy announced this week that the construction for the Central Asian-South Asian 1000 (CASA 1000) electricity project will begin in 2018. As a result of this, Afghanistan will earn $50 million USD annually from transit rights, which will be a major amount for reconstruction in Afghanistan. It will benefit the implementation of a number of public service projects worth $40 million USD. Moreover, Afghanistan and Germany will mutually invest nearly 70 million euros for the setting up of a modern Sukuk printing company which will allow Afghanistan to print its own money. The Indian government has also shared its intention with Afghan officials to spend around $450 million in housing projects in Afghanistan.

Also this week in Afghanistan…

The high economic council of Afghanistan pronounced the establishment of Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industries in the near future to assist the businesswomen to develop and grow the scope of their economic activities. The Afghan Ulema council, on the other hand, concluded in their meeting on Tuesday that the issuance of a decree of Jihad in Afghanistan is unacceptable.  International Organization for Migration (IOM) launched a four-year, EUR 18 million project with funding from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development (DG DEVCO) to support returnees and host communities across Afghanistan. Afghanistan’s Mohammad Shahzad notched up 1779 career T20I runs to surpass Indian skipper Virat Kohli as the fourth-most successful batsman in the shortest format of the game.

This weekly is written by Saddam Hussein who is a research intern at the Center for Research and Security Studies.