Senior Turkish officials to visit Islamabad next week over Pakistan-Afghanistan tensions: Erdogan

ANKARA, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- Türkiye, together with Qatar, is mediating efforts to resolve the conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday, adding that senior Turkish officials are scheduled to visit Islamabad next week to discuss the tensions.

Erdogan told reporters on his return flight from Azerbaijan that Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Defense Minister Yasar Guler, and National Intelligence Organization chief Ibrahim Kalin will visit Islamabad in an effort to help end the conflict, according to the semi-official Anadolu Agency.

"Our goal is to put in place measures and mechanisms that will make the ceasefire sustainable and to permanently end terrorist incidents in the region," Erdogan was quoted as saying.

While expressing hope for a permanent ceasefire and peace, Erdogan said Türkiye continues to urge both sides to exercise restraint.

The two-day peace talks between Afghanistan and Pakistan ended in Türkiye's largest city Istanbul without any tangible result, Afghan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Saturday.

"Due to the irresponsible attitude and lack of cooperation of the Pakistani delegation, the meeting ended without any tangible result," Afghanistan's state-run Bakhtar news agency quoted Mujahid on Saturday as saying.

Pakistan's Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said on Friday that the peace talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan held in Istanbul stalled without any agreement.

"The talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan are over and have entered an indefinite phase. Right now, negotiations are over," the minister told local media.

The dialogue process between Pakistan and Afghanistan was launched after border clashes in early October that left several soldiers and civilians dead on both sides, with Türkiye and Qatar stepping in to mediate following the clashes. ■