By Naveed Siddiqui
Copyright brecorder
ISLAMABAD: The two-day political dialogue in Islamabad brought together a large number of prominent Afghan political leaders, women, and social activists to discuss a peaceful future for Afghanistan. The rare event marks the first such gathering of the Taliban’s adversaries in Pakistan since the 2021 Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
Women for Afghanistan (WFA) and the South Asian Strategic Stability Institute (SASSI) have jointly organized the first regional dialogue titled “Towards Unity and Trust”. The two-day Islamabad Process dialogue will be held on 29and 30 September in the federal capital.
Afghan leaders held closed-door meetings on the first day to exchange perspectives. A joint Pak-Afghan session was scheduled for the second day (Sept 30) to build trust and identify common ground. They highlighted that only an inclusive government based on the people’s aspirations can guarantee peace and regional stability.
This timely and important dialogue aims to promote an inclusive dialogue among a diverse group of Afghan leaders (women and men) alongside their Pakistani counterparts to foster inclusive dialogue, mutual understanding, and lasting cooperation.
Dialogue & Process Format
A dedicated platform for Afghan leaders to engage openly, exchange perspectives, and define shared principles for stability, rule of law, and reaffirming the support to women’s rights and inclusion, said a communiqué issued here.
Focused discussions aimed at building trust, identifying common ground, and advancing a people-centric approach to address regional challenges. The event will help strengthen cooperation between Afghan and Pakistani leaders, promote sustainable development, stability, and peace rooted in shared values, and highlight the importance of women’s participation and inclusive governance.
The dialogue will also encourage regional cooperation with a focus on economic development and trust-building. The dialogue underscores a simple truth: peace between people leads to peace between nations, the communiqué said.
By prioritising dialogue, inclusivity, and cooperation, WFA and SASSI University believe this initiative can pave the way for stronger, more mutually beneficial relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, grounded in unity and trust.
In addition, the process is going to foster a deeper understanding between the people of the two nations for a more sustained development and peace in the region. The commonality and the importance of the dialogue and the process stem from the need for Afghans to have the space to speak, engage, and think together to promote their common values and interests for their country and their people.
The dialogue will also serve to identify common grounds for cooperation between Afghan leaders and their Pakistani counterparts on an engagement basis of developing a centric approach to find common solutions for regional challenges and to build trust and stability.
Peace between the people will lead to peace between nations, to ultimately peace between countries, paving the way for more cooperative and mutually beneficial bilateral relationships based on trust and unity, the statement further emphasized.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
