Marking the first trip by a Pakistani official to Afghanistan in over a year, Pakistan’s deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister landed in Kabul on April 19th. Pakistan had decided to expel Afghan refugees months prior and closed their border which is said to have disrupted trade and business. They have had a period of a strained relationship because of the border discrepancies, but are now talking about a willingness to reset ties through diplomacy. The two leaders discussed issues on: “security, trade, transit, connectivity, and people-to-people contacts”. They are hoping to work together for security and peace of the area, according to Dar. Since the US removed their troops from Afghanistan, Pakistan has had more attacks on their soil, and Islamabad has alleged that “Afghan soil is being used by armed groups, especially the Pakistan Taliban, known by the acronym TTP, to launch attacks across the porous border.” There is a lot more history in this region that have caused their relationships to be poor.
This is an important step for these countries and this region because there has been a lot of conflict between various different states. “It was not a start, but instead a culmination of the agenda to re-engage with Afghanistan and break the ice,” he said. The start of strengthening these relationships and borders can be the beginning of more stability for this region. Since there has been many attacks and conflicts, I hope that this visit will minimize them.
This reboot was strategic of Pakistan in regards to regional influence and to possibly counter India’s presence in Afghanistan alongside of providing themselves security on their border against terrorism. Creating a relationship with Pakistan could provide Afghanistan with more resources and trade. Their relationship would be mutually beneficial and help strengthen the whole region as well. This is showing acts of realism because they are doing this for the betterment of their country; security, power, and national interest. This would also help overcome many historical grievances, and if we looked at it from a constructionist point of view, cooperation could be built off their shared values to change behaviors.