Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan Tripartite Summit

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hosted a summit with his Pakistani and Afghan counterparts in Tehran on May 24, 2009 aimed at finding ways to combat Islamic extremism and drug smuggling in the region.Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari both headed high-level delegations.

The summit came after Afghanistan’s largest-ever drugs seizure in an operation that ended on May 24 in a Taliban stronghold and opium-production centre in the south of the country, in which troops killed 60 militants.

Aims and Objectives
The summit among neighbors has always been important, specially under the grave conditions of today that three countries under threats and face important regional issues. The summit of the three heads of state was aimed at a discussion of regional security and other issues of mutual interest. At present the three nations are suffering from drug and human trafficking which has put pressure on the three countries.

The Tehran summit also aimed to create a ‘mechanism’ for regular high-level consultation between the three neighbours besides other issues of trilateral interests. Afghan social and economic developments as well as expanding cooperation on trade and communication systems are among the topics that were discussed at the summit.

Eliminating Terrorism
The trilateral summit reaffirmed their commitment to eliminate terrorism from the region and agreed to hold regular consultations on important matters between the three countries.

The leaders pledged to address the root cause of terrorism and extremism, “which are in stark contrast with the spirit of Islam and the rich cultural traditions of the region”. The leaders also agreed to establish a mechanism for holding regular consultations on important issues.

The three countries have to get together to tackle these challenges. It is not just the matter of their survival, but for the betterment and safety of their future generations.They can tackle every challenge and achieve progress by getting together.

Developing Mutual Cooperation
Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan, which are geologically neighbors and share common culture, history, and tradition, can tackle every challenge by getting together and achieving development and progress.

The summit also proposed to have a trilateral mechanism on the dialogue on development to realize the true potential of trade and economic cooperation among the three important countries of the region.

The leaders of the summit stressed on the need to further strengthen mutual cooperation among the three countries. They stressed that the three countries can achieve new milestones of economic progress by employing their resources.

He three Presidents stressed on the need for a common strategy to overcome the challenges faced by the countries in the fields of economy, development, and education.

Resolve Regional Problems
The leaders of the summit highlighted the importance of the regional cooperation and understanding. These three countries have close commonalties in civilization, culture as well as moralities and beliefs. They also have common enemies and friends. There are crippling and complicated problems in the region whose roots should be identified.

To resolve these problems, the people in the region should rely on their capabilities in various sectors. The three Presidents agreed on appropriate solutions to remove the problems in the region. Regional problems will be resolved through proper planning and public support, said the Iranian president. Heads of Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan are determined to exchange views to serve the peoples of the three neighbouring States.

Threats of Superpowers
The three countries, at present, are facing a serious challenge by presence of superpowers. The region is facing different challenges in the region including that these nations allowed the superpowers to become our neighbor, but they are not seeking war, they are seeking for better neighborliness.

The three Presidents expressed their roles and responsibilities towards the present and the future generations that is to respond to the history and they must take steps towards it. There are plenty of problems that have surrounded borders of these three counties and none of which them can overlook. The three countries must try to turn the events in a positive way. In addition these countries can voice their message to the world through multilateral meetings and the world can also give a better response to them.

At the end of the summit, the three Presidents also suggested to holding the next summit in Islamabad which was accepted by the Afghan side as well as the host country. The dates of the next summit in Islamabad will be finalized through mutual consultation.