Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammed Haneef Atmar has listed Pakistani terrorist groups like Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad as having "symbiotic" ties other terror groups in the region including Al Qaeda, Islamic State and collectively posing as a threat to the region.

Speaking at Hoover Institution's virtual event, Atmar said, "It is not just Taliban we are fighting in Afghanistan. There are 4 groups of transnational terror networks. There are those who are Afghans, 2nd group is regional terrorist, such as Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), East Turkestan Islamic Movement, Pakistani terrorist group is the 3rd category such as Lashkar-e-Toiba, TTP, Jaish-e-Mohammad and intl terrorist groups--Al Qaeda, Daesh"

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/afghanistan-10-taliban-terrorists-killed-as-clashes-resume-post-eid-ceasefire-318642">Afghanistan: 10 Taliban terrorists killed as clashes resume post Eid ceasefire</a>

Explaining, "They all have symbiotic relationships. Not only among themselves but also transnational organised criminal network. They benefit from narcotics, they benefit from organised crime. They collectively pose a national security threat, to the region and the world."

India has raised many concerns regarding cross border terror emerging from Pakistan at the multilateral organisation

Without naming Pakistan, calling the failure to address sanctuaries outside Afghanistan, Atmar said, "The problem of sanctuaries outside Afghanistan...The Taliban has driven away from Afghanistan, they were given sanctuaries outside of Afghanistan and to this day we were not able to address the sanctuary problem"&nbsp;

A recent United Nations report highlighted that about 6500 Pakistani as foreign terrorist fighters are present in Afghanistan with Pakistan based terror groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Toiba having around 1000 armed fighters in the landlocked South Asian country. Most of the Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Toiba fighters are co-located with Taliban fighters and are hand in glove with them. 
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Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammed Haneef Atmar has listed Pakistani terrorist groups like Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad as having "symbiotic" ties other terror groups in the region including Al Qaeda, Islamic State and collectively posing as a threat to the region.

Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammed Haneef Atmar has listed Pakistani terrorist groups like Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad as having "symbiotic" ties other terror groups in the region including Al Qaeda, Islamic State and collectively posing as a threat to the region. Speaking at Hoover Institution's virtual event, Atmar said, "It is not just Taliban we are fighting in Afghanistan. There are 4 groups of transnational terror networks. There are those who are Afghans, 2nd group is regional terrorist, such as Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), East Turkestan Islamic Movement, Pakistani terrorist group is the 3rd category such as Lashkar-e-Toiba, TTP, Jaish-e-Mohammad and intl terrorist groups--Al Qaeda, Daesh" Also read | Afghanistan: 10 Taliban terrorists killed as clashes resume post Eid ceasefire Explaining, "They all have symbiotic relationships. Not only among themselves but also transnational organised criminal network. They benefit from narcotics, they benefit from organised crime. They collectively pose a national security threat, to the region and the world." India has raised many concerns regarding cross border terror emerging from Pakistan at the multilateral organisation Without naming Pakistan, calling the failure to address sanctuaries outside Afghanistan, Atmar said, "The problem of sanctuaries outside Afghanistan...The Taliban has driven away from Afghanistan, they were given sanctuaries outside of Afghanistan and to this day we were not able to address the sanctuary problem" A recent United Nations report highlighted that about 6500 Pakistani as foreign terrorist fighters are present in Afghanistan with Pakistan based terror groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Toiba having around 1000 armed fighters in the landlocked South Asian country. Most of the Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Toiba fighters are co-located with Taliban fighters and are hand in glove with them.

Afghan foreign minister says Pakistani terror groups have symbiotic relations with Al Qaeda, IS

The Pentagon or the US department of defence, in its report on Afghanistan, has said Afghanistan-Pakistan border region remains a sanctuary for various terror groups.

These groups include al-Qa’ida Core (AQ), al-Qa’ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT), Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K).&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/un-concerned-afghan-violence-aimed-at-derailing-peace-talks-310176">Also read|&nbsp;UN concerned Afghan violence aimed at derailing peace talks</a>

The report said, "Terrorist sanctuaries on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border present security challenges for both countries (Afghanistan and Pakistan), pose a threat to regional security and stability, and threaten U.S. national security interests."

Highlighting US interest in Afghanistan, the report said, Washington wants to "ensure the country is never again used as a safe haven from which terrorists can attack the United States, or our Allies or interests abroad" and "accordingly, the primary U.S. Government objective in Afghanistan is to support the Afghan government's effort to obtain a durable political settlement that ends the war and mitigates terrorist threats emanating from Afghanistan."

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/want-peaceful-democratic-afghanistan-with-rights-for-women-minorities-khalid-noor-310052">Also read|&nbsp;Want peaceful, democratic Afghanistan with rights for women, minorities: Khalid Noor</a>

The report also highlighted the "close ties" al-Qa’ida's regional affiliate—al-Qa’ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) has maintained with Taliban.&nbsp;

Last month a United Nations report said that about 6,500 Pakistanis as foreign terrorist fighters are present in Afghanistan including 1,000 belonging to Pakistan based terror groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Most of the Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba fighters are co-located with Taliban fighters and are hand in glove with them, the report said.

The UN monitoring team in its annual technical update to United Nations Security Council said, "The number of foreign terrorist fighters in search of a purpose and livelihood in Afghanistan, including up to 6,500 Pakistanis, will render this a complex challenge, which will require careful monitoring.

The Pentagon or the US department of defence, in its report on Afghanistan, has said Afghanistan-Pakistan border region remains a sanctuary for various terror groups.

The Pentagon or the US department of defence, in its report on Afghanistan, has said Afghanistan-Pakistan border region remains a sanctuary for various terror groups. These groups include al-Qa’ida Core (AQ), al-Qa’ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT), Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K). Also read| UN concerned Afghan violence aimed at derailing peace talks The report said, "Terrorist sanctuaries on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border present security challenges for both countries (Afghanistan and Pakistan), pose a threat to regional security and stability, and threaten U.S. national security interests." Highlighting US interest in Afghanistan, the report said, Washington wants to "ensure the country is never again used as a safe haven from which terrorists can attack the United States, or our Allies or interests abroad" and "accordingly, the primary U.S. Government objective in Afghanistan is to support the Afghan government's effort to obtain a durable political settlement that ends the war and mitigates terrorist threats emanating from Afghanistan." Also read| Want peaceful, democratic Afghanistan with rights for women, minorities: Khalid Noor The report also highlighted the "close ties" al-Qa’ida's regional affiliate—al-Qa’ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) has maintained with Taliban. Last month a United Nations report said that about 6,500 Pakistanis as foreign terrorist fighters are present in Afghanistan including 1,000 belonging to Pakistan based terror groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba. Most of the Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba fighters are co-located with Taliban fighters and are hand in glove with them, the report said. The UN monitoring team in its annual technical update to United Nations Security Council said, "The number of foreign terrorist fighters in search of a purpose and livelihood in Afghanistan, including up to 6,500 Pakistanis, will render this a complex challenge, which will require careful monitoring.

Afghan-Pak border sanctuary for terror groups: Pentagon

China and Pakistan will look at extending their $57 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to Afghanistan, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday, part of China&#39;s ambitious Belt and Road plan linking China with Asia, Europe and beyond.

China has tried to position itself as a helpful party to promote talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan, both uneasy neighbours ever since Pakistan`s independence in 1947.

Their ties have been poisoned in recent years by Afghan accusations that Pakistan is supporting Taliban insurgents fighting the US-backed Kabul in order to limit the influence of its old rival, India, in Afghanistan.

Pakistan denies that and says it wants to see a peaceful, stable Afghanistan.

Speaking after the first trilateral meeting between the foreign ministers of China, Pakistan and Afghanistan, Wang said China hoped the economic corridor could benefit the whole region and act as an impetus for development.

Afghanistan has urgent need to develop and improve people&#39;s lives and hopes it can join inter-connectivity initiatives, Wang told reporters, as he announced that Pakistan and Afghanistan had agreed to mend their strained relations.

&quot;So China and Pakistan are willing to look at with Afghanistan, on the basis of win-win, mutually beneficial principles, using an appropriate means to extend the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to Afghanistan,&quot; he added.

How that could happen needs the three countries to reach a gradual consensus, tackling easier, smaller projects first, Wang said, without giving details.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif said his country and China were &quot;iron brothers&quot;, but did not directly mention the prospect of Afghanistan joining the corridor.

&quot;The successful implementation of CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor) projects will serve as a model for enhancing connectivity and cooperation through similar projects with neighbouring countries, including Afghanistan, Iran and with central and west Asia,&quot; he said.

India has looked askance at the project as parts of it run through Pakistan-administered Kashmir that India considers its own territory, though Wang said the plan had nothing to do with territorial disputes.

China has sought to bring Kabul and Islamabad together partly due to Chinese fears about the spread of Islamist militancy from Pakistan and Afghanistan to the unrest-prone far western Chinese region of Xinjiang.

As such, China has pushed for Pakistan and Afghanistan to improve their own ties so they can better tackle the violence in their respective countries, and has also tried to broker peace talks with Afghan Taliban militants, to limited effect.

A tentative talks process collapsed in 2015.

Wang said China fully supported peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban and would continue to provide &quot;necessary facilitation&quot;.

The Belt and Road infrastructure drive aim to build a modern-day &quot;Silk Road&quot; connecting China to economies in Southeast and Central Asia by land and the Middle East and Europe by sea.

China has tried to position itself as a helpful party to promote talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan

China and Pakistan will look at extending their $57 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to Afghanistan, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday, part of China's ambitious Belt and Road plan linking China with Asia, Europe and beyond. China has tried to position itself as a helpful party to promote talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan, both uneasy neighbours ever since Pakistan`s independence in 1947. Their ties have been poisoned in recent years by Afghan accusations that Pakistan is supporting Taliban insurgents fighting the US-backed Kabul in order to limit the influence of its old rival, India, in Afghanistan. Pakistan denies that and says it wants to see a peaceful, stable Afghanistan. Speaking after the first trilateral meeting between the foreign ministers of China, Pakistan and Afghanistan, Wang said China hoped the economic corridor could benefit the whole region and act as an impetus for development. Afghanistan has urgent need to develop and improve people's lives and hopes it can join inter-connectivity initiatives, Wang told reporters, as he announced that Pakistan and Afghanistan had agreed to mend their strained relations. "So China and Pakistan are willing to look at with Afghanistan, on the basis of win-win, mutually beneficial principles, using an appropriate means to extend the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to Afghanistan," he added. How that could happen needs the three countries to reach a gradual consensus, tackling easier, smaller projects first, Wang said, without giving details. Pakistani Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif said his country and China were "iron brothers", but did not directly mention the prospect of Afghanistan joining the corridor. "The successful implementation of CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor) projects will serve as a model for enhancing connectivity and cooperation through similar projects with neighbouring countries, including Afghanistan, Iran and with central and west Asia," he said. India has looked askance at the project as parts of it run through Pakistan-administered Kashmir that India considers its own territory, though Wang said the plan had nothing to do with territorial disputes. China has sought to bring Kabul and Islamabad together partly due to Chinese fears about the spread of Islamist militancy from Pakistan and Afghanistan to the unrest-prone far western Chinese region of Xinjiang. As such, China has pushed for Pakistan and Afghanistan to improve their own ties so they can better tackle the violence in their respective countries, and has also tried to broker peace talks with Afghan Taliban militants, to limited effect. A tentative talks process collapsed in 2015. Wang said China fully supported peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban and would continue to provide "necessary facilitation". The Belt and Road infrastructure drive aim to build a modern-day "Silk Road" connecting China to economies in Southeast and Central Asia by land and the Middle East and Europe by sea.

China, Pakistan to look at including Afghanistan in $57 billion economic corridor