KABUL: Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Wednesday declined an invitation to visit Pakistan, his deputy spokesman confirmed, saying he would not visit the neighbouring country until perpetrators of recent attacks in Afghanistan are not handed over.
Ghani’s deputy spokesman said the president turned down the invitation during his meetings with Pakistani delegates, the BBC reported.
“I will not go to Pakistan until Islamabad hands over perpetrators of Mazar Sharif, American University Kabul and Kandahar attacks to Kabul,” the spokesman quoted Ghani as saying.
The Afghan president also demanded action against Afghan Taliban present in Pakistan, an accusation Islamabad has repeatedly denied.
However, neither the Foreign Office of Pakistan nor military officials have so far reacted to turning down of the invitation by President Ghani.
Pakistan has long been saying that its soil is not being used against any country including Afghanistan.
Islamabad has also time and again apprised the Afghan government of terrorist attacks being coordinated from its territory against Pakistan.
Earlier this year, Pakistan was hit by five deadly terrorist attacks in a week. The attacks were claimed by outlawed Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, which operates with impunity on the Afghan soil.
They followed nearly a month’s closure of Pak-Afghan border and an intense military campaign to wipe out all terrorists from the country.
