Pakistan calls for bolstering Afghan stability as international forces pullout

Pakistan has underscored the need for ensuring that the draw down of international forces from Afghanistan does not lead to a security vacuum, while reaffirming Islamabad's support to an Afghan-led peace and reconciliation process aimed at stabilizing the war-torn country, said an official press release on Wednesday. The Pakistani Ambassador to the United Nations, Masood Khan told the Security Council, "It is vital that arrangements are in place beyond 2014 to bolster stability in Afghanistan and its neighborhood." While participating in a debate on the situation of Afghanistan, the Pakistani envoy wishes the Afghan people success in negotiating difficult economic, political and security transitions, and said that credible elections would have an impact on peace and stability, and that related security challenges must be addressed in the early planning stages. The Ambassador stressed that it was imperative to reverse the destructive cycle of violence. He said that Pakistan would not choose sides or interferes in Afghan affairs, nor should any other State. He added, "The people of Afghanistan must have the necessary strategic and political space to make their own decisions." The Pakistani envoy also said Afghanistan's transformation from a wartime to a peacetime economy would require more reliance on growth. Masood Khan told the 15-nation Council that Pakistani Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif and Afghan President Hamid Karzai had resolved to craft a strategic partnership and work for economic development. However, while Pakistan had renewed the legal status of Afghan refugees to the end of 2015, it would not be able to absorb fresh inflows, the press release added.