ISLAMABAD: In an apparent indication of Pakistan and Afghanistan narrowing their strategic differences, Afghan intelligence service acting head, Hassamuddin Hassam, secretly visited Pakistan in December.
His visit took place after a suicide attack on the Afghan National Directorate of Security Chief Assadullah Khalid.
The Afghan government had claimed that the attack had been planned in Quetta while President Hamid Karzai accused an unnamed foreign intelligence agency of having masterminded it.
Although Hassam’s visit primarily focused on investigations into the attack on Khalid, it also led to improved bilateral ties at the military and intelligence levels.
Two Afghans have been arrested by Pakistani authorities in connection with the attack. According to sources, the Afghan spy agency was satisfied by the investigation and cooperation of Pakistan. Information about the visit was shared with the Senate Standing Committee on Defence and Defence Production during an ‘in-camera’ briefing by officials.
Members of the committee are going to Afghanistan Monday for the first parliamentary dialogue between the two countries in the defence sector. Committee Chairman, Senator Mushahid Hussain, said the three-day talks would act as a force multiplier for relations. Internews
