Imran Khan: "Pakistan Would Never Again Partner with US in War"

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Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has denounced his country's previous policy of becoming a front-line country in the US-led war against terrorism in Afghanistan, labeling it as "idiotic."

"Pakistan could be partners with the United States in peace but never in conflict," said Khan yesterday, Wednesday, during the National Assembly's budget session.

Khan also ruled out the possibility of providing Pakistani bases for the US military to launch military strikes against Afghanistan.

Earlier, the Pakistani Prime Minister stressed his country's position on establishing US military bases in its territory.

In an op-ed for the US newspaper The Washington Post, Khan stressed that Islamabad will not support any party in the Afghan conflict, adding that it "will work with any government that enjoys the confidence of the Afghan people."

He also stressed that "Pakistan is ready to be a partner for peace in Afghanistan with the United States," noting that Pakistan opposes "any military takeover of Afghanistan, which will lead only to decades of civil war."

In this context, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi confirmed, last June, his country's refusal to house US military bases to monitor Afghanistan after the withdrawal of foreign forces from Kabul, following the Doha Agreement, which was signed on February 29, 2020.

Last April, a tripartite meeting of the foreign ministers of Turkey, Afghanistan, and Pakistan was held to discuss areas of cooperation between the three countries on security, energy, and migration, in addition to the developments of the peace process in Afghanistan.