After a visit to Kabul, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that Pakistan will provide $5 billion in humanitarian aid to A...

 After a visit to Kabul, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that Pakistan will provide $5 billion in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.

Pakistan's Foreign Minister, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, stated on Thursday that Pakistan will provide $5 billion in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.

"If they need medications at hospitals [...] or whatever else their priorities are, they will inform us, and we will be ready to offer them humanitarian help in kind," the minister told the reporters during a day-long visit to Kabul.

During the news conference, Qureshi stated that the Afghan government recognised and was "thankful" for Pakistan's assistance in times of need, as well as the country's decades-long hosting of refugees.

"Right now, there is a transition, there are obstacles, and Pakistan will play whatever part it needs to play to overcome those challenges," he added.

According to the foreign minister, the high-level group that accompanied him on the trip comprised representatives from several ministries and institutions.

"The purpose of bringing [the delegation] was for them to split up into sub-groups following the main session and hammer out the intricacies of various issues connected to visas, commerce, and border movement."

A Taliban delegation would visit Islamabad in the coming days to follow up on the problems addressed during today's meeting, he added.

The Taliban leadership, according to Qureshi, has also pledged total support for initiatives of mutual interest, including as the CASA-1000 project, the TAPI gas pipeline project, and the Transnational Railway project.

The minister stated that Pakistani officials will no longer need Afghans crossing the border to get a "gate permit" from the interior ministry, among other agreements discussed at the meeting.

To encourage bilateral commerce, he said Pakistan will allow duty-free imports of fruits and vegetables from Afghanistan, and border crossings will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

He also revealed that Afghan businesspeople would now be allowed to obtain a visa-on-arrival, as well as the embassy in Kabul being authorised to give five-year visas to them.

Qureshi further stated that the Afghan authorities had informed the Pakistani team that no one, including the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Balochistan Liberation Army, would be allowed to utilise Afghan land against Pakistan (BLA).

A trip to Kabul

Qureshi arrived in Kabul earlier today, leading a high-level team to discuss bilateral ties and measures to improve collaboration with Afghan officials and leaders, according to a statement from the Foreign Office (FO).

Qureshi disembarked the plane first, followed by Inter-Services Intelligence chief Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed, according to footage aired by Pakistan's state broadcaster Associated Press.

At the airport's tarmac, they were greeted by Afghanistan's Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and Pakistan Ambassador to Kabul Mansoor Ahmad Khan.

Later, Qureshi and his party were honoured at a luncheon held by Afghan Deputy Prime Minister Abdus Salam Hanafi. On the event, a big number of members of the Afghan temporary cabinet were present.

According to a FO statement, Hanafi welcomed Qureshi to Kabul, and Qureshi praised the Taliban leadership for their "warm hospitality."

Foreign Minister Qureshi stated that Pakistan was committed to assisting the Afghan people in overcoming their economic crises.

The foreign minister told reporters after the meeting that he had a lengthy and result-oriented talk with the Taliban leadership.

Almost every member of Afghanistan's cabinet was there, according to Qureshi, and the two sides discussed a wide range of bilateral matters, including efforts to improve commerce and regional connectivity.

According to the minister, he was joined by a group made up of members from other ministries who met with Afghan authorities. "Hopefully, their group will arrive in Islamabad in the next days so that we can go on with these talks and resolve issues."

He claimed the discussion was "effective" and that he would provide additional details when he returned to Islamabad.

Earlier, the FO stated: "During his one-day visit, [Qureshi] will meet with Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and the interim government's leadership in Kabul. He will also meet with other Afghan authorities."

The discussions would cover the "entire spectrum" of Pakistan-Afghanistan ties, with an emphasis on ways to strengthen collaboration between the two nations in a variety of fields, according to the FO.

"The foreign minister will take advantage of the occasion to express Pakistan's views on problems of regional peace and stability."

According to the FO statement, Pakistan has always stood by Afghanistan as a "close fraternal neighbour," citing a number of measures to that end, including keeping border crossing points open, instituting a more favourable visa regime for Afghan nationals, and providing humanitarian aid and assistance in the form of food and medicine.

"Pakistan's constant policy of assisting the brotherly Afghan people, strengthening bilateral trade and economic connections, and promoting deeper people-to-people contacts" is reflected in the foreign minister's visit, according to the FO.

Moscow is holding negotiations.

FM Qureshi's visit coincides with Russia's hosting of the Taliban in Moscow for negotiations.

Pakistan's Special Representative for Afghanistan, Ambassador Mohammad Sadiq, who attended the meetings on Wednesday, emphasised the need of providing humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, stating that the international community "must boost up efforts" in this regard.

According to the envoy's statement, peace in Afghanistan will help the whole region in terms of stability, secure borders, improved connectivity, refugee repatriation, and counter-terrorism.

He emphasised Pakistan's deep view that peace and prosperity go hand in hand, adding that "Pakistan's positive participation in [the] Afghan peace process is well-recognized and appreciated by the international world."