China’s government said Afghanistan and Pakistan have agreed not to escalate their conflict and to “explore a comprehensive solution” after several weeks of cross-border fighting between the two countries that has left hundreds of people killed.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Wednesday that after seven days of peace talks in the western Chinese city of Urumqi under China mediation, all the parties also agreed to keep the dialogue.
“The three parties agreed to explore a comprehensive solution to the issues in the relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and clarified the core and priority issues that need to be addressed,” Mao said during the daily briefing in Beijing.
She added that they acknowledged that “terrorism is the core issue affecting the relationship.”
Afghanistan and Pakistan said that they won’t “take actions that would escalate or complicate the situation.”
The talks began last week in Urumqi at the invitation of China, in an effort to stop the conflict that began between the two countries in February.
Pakistan, which declared it was in “open war” with its neighbor, has also carried out airstrikes inside Afghanistan, including in the capital Kabul.
