Pakistan tells US Afghanistan War Commission to include regional perspective in 20-year conflict review
By The South Asia Times
ISLAMABAD - Pakistan’s military leadership has urged a U.S. commission reviewing Washington’s two-decade war in Afghanistan to incorporate Pakistan’s experience and the broader regional security perspective into its assessment of the conflict.
According to Pakistan’s military media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), a delegation of the U.S. Afghanistan War Commission, led by co-chairs Shamila N. Chaudhary and Dr. Colin F. Jackson, met with Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces, at General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi.
The commission is reviewing the United States’ 20-year engagement in Afghanistan, according to ISPR.
Pakistan highlights impact of Afghanistan war
During the meeting, the sides discussed issues of mutual interest, including Pakistan’s support for the Afghanistan conflict, the regional security environment and developments in Afghanistan, with particular attention to issues relevant to the commission’s review.
Munir presented Pakistan’s perspective on the security dynamics that shaped the conflict and highlighted the challenges Pakistan faced during the prolonged U.S.-led war in neighboring Afghanistan.
He stressed the importance of including the regional perspective and Pakistan’s experience when assessing the conflict’s strategic, diplomatic and operational dimensions, ISPR said.
Pakistan was a key U.S. partner during much of the Afghanistan war and shared a long border with Afghanistan. Islamabad has repeatedly said it suffered significant security and economic consequences from the conflict and subsequent instability in Afghanistan.
According to ISPR, the U.S. delegation acknowledged Pakistan’s longstanding role and sacrifices during the Afghanistan conflict and appreciated Islamabad’s continued contribution to regional peace and stability.
The meeting comes as the Afghanistan War Commission examines the United States’ two-decade involvement in Afghanistan, including the decisions and policies that shaped the conflict and its eventual conclusion with the withdrawal of U.S. forces in 2021.
