UN High Commissioner Expresses Concerns Over Arbitrary Expulsion of Afghans From Pakistan

It has been said that the agreement emphasises on strengthening economic relations, improving customs affairs, facilitating the issuance of visas and transit.

Taliban’s ministry of commerce in a statement wrote that in this agreement, cooperation on regional connectivity, reduction of transit costs, transportation facilities, digitisation of customs systems, strengthening and development of the banking system have been agreed.

The agreement has been signed by Nooruddin Azizi, the Minister of Commerce of Taliban; Gohar Ejaz, the Minister of Industries of Pakistan, and Jamshid Khodjaev, the Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, on Tuesday, in a meeting in Islamabad.

In this meeting, the enhancement of regional integration through the development of trilateral economic and trade relations, as well as the expansion of transit facilities were emphasised.

The participants of the meeting reviewed the prospects of investment in different sectors and emphasised on joint investments in the private and public sector.

Gohar Ejaz stressed on the access of all three countries to new markets in the region and called for the strengthening of mutual economic relations.

Ejaz said that the tripartite meeting is an important step towards close economic cooperation and provides the basis for increasing trade, investment and economic relations.

Following the decisions made in this meeting, the technical groups of the three countries are set to commence their work in the field of trade and transit in the next week, and sharing the results to facilitate the signing of the final agreement among the three parties.

The Taliban said that the total value of the contract is USD 36 million.

According to Bakhtar news agency, the contract was signed on Wednesday, in the presence of Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s deputy prime minister for economic affairs.

The Taliban said that this project will be completed in the next two years.

Baradar stated that in this project, aside from enhancing Afghanistan's industry, DABS will benefit monetarily.

According to a statement from Mullah Baradar's office, Afghan Invest company is set to complete the 500 KV power line project between Sheberghan and Dashte Alwan, spanning over 305 kilometers, within the next two years.

The Taliban stated that approximately 76 percent of the project has been completed, and Afghan Invest is tasked with finishing the remaining 23 percent of the work.

The ministry emphasised that without explicit instructions from Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban leader, no entity is authorised to allocate, trade, or claim ownership of lands near the canal.

In a recent statement, the Ministry urged the public to refrain from attempting to acquire land around the Qosh Tapa Canal until a formal directive is issued by the Taliban's leadership.

This clarification comes amid rising speculation over the past few months about land allocations in the Qosh Tapa development area. Reports suggested that lands near the canal were being distributed to Taliban members.

Last year, the National Resistance Front accused the Taliban of allocating lands around the canal to individuals, including those allegedly transferred from Pakistan, and other outsiders.

Additionally, there have been allegations of certain companies involved in the Qosh Tapa project offering land in exchange for financial compensation.

Mullah Baradar, the Taliban's Deputy Prime Minister, has responded to these allegations, warning that anyone found engaging in unauthorised land distribution activities or financial transactions will face severe legal consequences.

The Qosh Tapa Canal, stretching approximately 270 kilometres, originates in the Kaldar district of Balkh and passes through Jowzjan province before reaching Faryab province. The Taliban has invested substantially in this project over the last two years. The canal, which diverts a portion of the Amu River's water, aims to irrigate about 550,000 hectares of land and potentially relocate up to three million people. Critics, however, view this as a strategic manoeuvre by the Taliban to relocate populations for specific objectives.

Pakistani officials have said that these goods are initially sent to Afghanistan with customs exemptions but are subsequently smuggled back into Pakistan.

Pakistan claims that Afghan traders have caused millions of dollars in financial losses to Pakistan by avoiding customs duties.

On Tuesday, AFP reported that Taliban officials said that Pakistan imposed excessive taxes and customs duties on Afghan traders, resulting in millions of dollars in damages due to the halt of containers.

A Taliban official from the consulate in Peshawar told AFP that hundreds of containers have been stopped since several months ago and some shipments have been detained for more than a year.

This Taliban official said that the goods inside the containers are getting worn out and the traders have suffered a lot of losses.

In a statement, the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad mentioned that Nooruddin Azizi, the Taliban’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, discussed transit issues concerning goods with the Foreign Minister of Pakistan on Monday. However, Pakistan has not publicly responded to this request as of yet.

Afghan businessmen face challenges in Pakistan while, in a tripartite meeting on Tuesday with the Taliban and Uzbekistan, Gohar Ejaz, the Minister of Industries of Pakistan, emphasised on the need for the continued and strengthened commercial and economic relations among these three countries. He demanded that all three nations should have access to new markets.

Ejaz stated that the tripartite meeting is an important step towards close economic cooperation and provides the basis for increasing trade, investment and economic relations.

Enders called the condition of the returnees dire and said that most of those who return to Afghanistan do not have shelter.

He visited the Torkham border crossing to check the situation of migrants and he said that he witnessed thousands of Afghans returning from Pakistan. He described that many of them are in bad condition.

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator emphasised that, in conversations with the returnees, they expressed that there is no place for them to call home in Afghanistan.

Given the onset of winter, he said that the immigrants need shelter. However, Enders explained that all available tents, blankets, and relief items had been distributed to the victims of an earthquake in Herat a month ago.

OCHA said that the sudden influx has put immense pressure on existing resources and capacities, including shelter and basic services. It called for urgent support for the immigrants.