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Peace in Afghanistan can be achieved if its neighbours cooperate in the state-building process

The destiny of our region lies in what we do about our common opportunities and challenges. The challenges facing us cannot be addressed by one nation alone, nor can the many opportunities the region offers be exploited by any one country. Both aspects of the region call for results-oriented cooperation. The key problem confronting our region is insecurity caused by terrorism and extremism. As President Hamid Karzai recently stated in his address before the UN General Assembly, "Terrorism is not rooted in the Afghan villages and towns — it never was. Its sources and its support networks all exist beyond Afghanistan's borders."

Terrorists, operating out of external safe sanctuaries, daily launch suicide and IED attacks to kill and maim innocent Afghans, as well as our international allies. They are against any semblance of progress in Afghanistan. They burn down our schools, poison our students (many of them girls) and intimidate and terrorise our people. To overcome this major regional security threat, we have reached out to our neighbours and allies bilaterally, as well as through multilateral arrangements, for cooperation. In that regard, we welcome the trilateral strategic dialogue recently held by Afghanistan, India and the United States in New York and encourage other such mechanisms to address the challenges that confront our country and the region.

With Pakistan, we have maintained a consistent dialogue to find a sustainable solution to ending the war in Afghanistan, including a recent trilateral meeting of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Great Britain in New York. Pakistan is also a member of the trilateral core group consisting of Afghanistan and the US. Our foreign ministers met for the first time last July at the Tokyo Conference to enhance cooperation among the three countries in support of an Afghan-led peace and reconciliation process.

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