ISLAMABAD - Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar on Saturday said that Pakistan would support Kabul in holding of peaceful elections, as a stable, peaceful and strong Afghanistan would lead to greater economic cooperation between the two countries and beyond.
He said this while talking to Janan Mosazai, Ambassador of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan who called on him at Finance Ministry. The finance minister said that being Muslims, we share common social, cultural and religious heritage. He added that it is now time that, in line with our religious traditions; we take this relationship to a new level of economic and regional cooperation, which could reflect in consistency of our good neighbourly relations.
The minister also assured that state-of-the-art equipment for Nishtar Kidney Centre Jalalabad will be procured on fast track and human resource will be explored jointly. The ambassador briefed the finance minister on the follow up of the Joint Economic Commission (JEC) meeting held during Finance Minister’s visit to Afghanistan. He said that the people of his country see the finance minister, after his visit to Jalalabad, as a visionary, serious and sincere friend, who can transform relations between the two brotherly countries. He said that the Nishtar Kidney Centre Jalalabad is a special signature project of Pakistan, which will strengthen our bonds. The ambassador also briefed the finance minister on the forthcoming presidential elections in Afghanistan. He said that there is an independent Election Commission that will ensure transparent and credible elections followed by peaceful transfer of power.
 The Ambassador emphasized that, in order to take the economic relations forward and the commitments made during Joint Economic Commission, we need to devise a mechanism for implementation of these decisions. He suggested that the Implementation Committee can consist of technical officials from relevant Ministries of the two countries. He also expressed desire to have trade exhibitions to promote trade and investment between the brotherly countries.