UNITED NATIONS, Feb 1: Pakistan figured prominently in warnings sounded at the United Nations this week about the growing spillover of terrorist threats from Afghanistan, with both China and the UN chief expressing concern over militant violence affecting the country.
Addressing a high-level briefing on the Counter-Terrorism Early Warning Network for Central Asia on Friday, Chinese Ambassador to the UN Sun Lei said that while the Central Asia region remained broadly stable, it continued to be affected by cross-border terrorism.
"Currently, the Central Asia region remains generally stable, yet is still deeply affected by the spillover effect of terrorist threats," he said, citing recent attacks in Syria, Afghanistan and Pakistan that "deserve our high vigilance".
Emphasising Pakistan's long-standing concerns, the Chinese envoy called for closer cooperation with Kabul. "We need to strengthen engagement and cooperation with Afghanistan to prevent it from once again becoming a safe haven for terrorist organisations, and to jointly prevent and address the return of foreign terrorist fighters," he said.
Ambassador Sun also underlined the importance of development in countering extremism. "At the same time, it is imperative to accelerate the implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to eliminate the root causes of terrorism," he said.
A day earlier, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres raised similar concerns at a briefing in New York. He said the UN remained committed to four key objectives in Afghanistan, while voicing frustration over the Taliban's failure to make progress on inclusivity, human rights and regional security. "DAWN
