Pakistan no longer a militant safe haven: PM

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday categorically rejected the Afghan government's accusations of having "safe havens" and of "harbouring terrorists in refugee camps", asserting that keeping a complete check on refugee camps would be a difficult task for any government in the world.

The prime minister stated this, while addressing a two-day international conference on 40 years of Hosting Afghan Refugees in Pakistan - A New Partnership for Solidarity, being organised by the Government of Pakistan in collaboration with the UNHCR.

The UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, US Special Envoy for Afghan Reconciliation Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, Afghanistan Second Vice President Sarwar Danish, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and others also addressed the first day of the conference.

In response to an earlier accusation by Afghan Second Vice President Sarwar Danish who accused Pakistan of "harbouring terrorists in refugee camps responsible for instability in Afghanistan", Prime Minister Khan out-rightly rejected the allegations, saying that there were no terrorists' "safe havens" in Pakistan.

"There are no safe havens in Pakistan," the prime minister said, adding that such scenario could have a possibility soon after 9/11 when militants were on the run and fleeing Afghanistan.

He, however, made it clear that keeping a complete check on the refugee camps with over 500,000 people, would be a difficult task for any government.

Khan pointed out that Pakistan had started border fencing to keep a vigil on the situation, adding that it should be rest assured that instability in Afghanistan was not in Pakistan's interest.

He said that the entire leadership in Pakistan, including civilian and military, was on the same page for its commitment to peace and stability in Afghanistan.

The prime minister emphasized that conflict in Afghanistan was not in Pakistan's interest and the country was making constant efforts to restore peace in neighbouring Afghanistan.

He said that Pakistan extended the best ever support to the Afghan peace process, adding that Islamabad needed peace in Afghanistan for development and prosperity of internally-displaced persons.

"Development is only possible through trade and friendly relations, which will also help us to improve our relations with the Central Asian states," Khan asserted.

With hosting of Afghan refugees for four decades, he said that Pakistan had a sincere resolve towards durable peace in the war-torn country and also to ensure smooth repatriation of Afghan nationals.

"People of Afghanistan deserve peace and we will continue to facilitate the peace process by taking it in the right direction," PM Khan said.

He pointed out that Pakistan was hosting the Afghan refugees since 1979 and is the second largest refugee-hosting nation with 2.7 million refugees.

Khan said that despite economic challenges, Pakistan provided facilities related to education, vocational training and also social inclusion to the Afghan refugees.

The prime minister stated that ensuring connectivity between Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asia was important for the region's development and prosperity and that required commitment by all stakeholders.

He highlighted that Pakistan was not seeking peace in Afghanistan because it had been hosting the current 1.4 million Afghan refugees, but because the people of Afghanistan deserved peace.

Referring to the worst human rights violations in Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir, he said that minorities particularly Muslims, were being marginalized in Modi's India.

PM Khan said that the racist ideology of the BJP government had severe implications.

He also urged the United Nations to take notice of the situation in the occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

The prime minister also pointed out that Islamophobia began after 9/11.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres's address

In his address to the conference, UN chief Antonio Guterres said Pakistan's resilience and exceptional generosity made it the second largest refugee-hosting nation in the world.

Guterres called upon the international community to come forward and join the path towards durable peace in Afghanistan.

"Afghanistan and its people cannot be abandoned and it is time for the world to act," the UN chief said, adding that peace efforts could pave the way for humanitarian development in war-torn Afghanistan.

He said that durable solution to refugee problem was voluntary repatriation and said work on the region-specific framework in this regard, was in progress.

The UN chief also appreciated the steps taken by Pakistan for Afghan refugees including biometric registration and providing access to education despite its own severe challenges.

"The fact must be recognized that the international support to Pakistan for refugees was less as compared to the country's own contribution," he said. In the second session, Guterres asserted that the solution to refugees' problem was not humanitarian, but political, which was peace.

"We need to mobilize the international community to support peace and prevent spoilers, both internal within Afghanistan and external, from damaging the peace process," he asserted.

He also pointed out that only a dignified return of the refugees was not enough to say, 'but we need to create those conditions in Afghanistan, which pave the way for voluntary return of the refugees to their homes'.

Zalmay Khalilzad

In the second session of the conference, US special representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad thanked Pakistan for its constructive role in Afghan peace process, saying that Pakistan was part of the solution. "No doubt, it is very complicated problem... We have challenges, both internal and external. There has to be a political solution, which needs compromises," he said while referring to the ongoing peace efforts, adding that both the US and the Taliban had agreed to sign a peace deal after getting commitments on security issues.

"A terrible war is continuing and we need to bring it to an end," Khalilzad said.

He also underscored the need for the US to engage both with Pakistan and Afghanistan with a view that there was no blame game.

He also emphasized the need for economic cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan, adding that the ultimate economic solution was regional economic cooperation, which he termed as a key to regional prosperity.

Khalilzad expressed the hope that the US Taliban agreement would lead to fortification of Pak-Afghan trade ties as well, ushering in a new phase.

He said that the US wanted better ties with Pakistan, focusing on economic development, rule of law and governance.

"We are partner not only peace in Afghanistan but also for the economic development, we desire an excellent relationship with Pakistan," the top US envoy said.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, in his address to the conference, said nearly three generations of Afghan refugees were hosted in Pakistan for four decades.

However, he stated that no country could tackle the problem of refugees alone and urged the international community to join hands with Pakistan for a dignified return of Afghan refugees.

Qureshi said a joint global action was needed to share the burden of refugees which reinforced existing partnerships and enhanced social and economic participation.

Afghan second vice president

Afghan second vice president said that Afghan government fully supports the US-Taliban talks for durable peace.

However, he emphasized the importance of a direct dialogue with the Afghan government.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said Afghan displacement could only be resolved through peace.

He pointed out that Pakistan and Iran together continued to host 90 percent of registered Afghan refugees globally.

He also welcomed the constructive dialogue between the governments of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan, in the framework of the Solutions Strategy for Afghan Refugees, launched together with the UNHCR in 2012.