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By Shabbir Hussain
ISLAMABAD, Nov 16 (Diplomatic Star): The German Ambassador to Pakistan, Alfred Grannas Wednesday said that the dream of establishing sustainable stability in South Asia is directly linked with both Pakistan and Afghanistan’s stability.
The Envoy said that collective efforts were required to address Afghanistan and its challenges for peace and development, besides creating awareness among the masses about the importance of strong democratic culture in the country and its benefits for social uplifts.
The ambassador has appreciating Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) Pakistan’s efforts and its work for promotion of political culure in he reagion and in Pakisan.
He expressed these views during a two day an academic conference on “Challenges to Bilateral Pakistan-Afghanistan Dialogue and their Solutions” jointly organized by the Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) Pakistan and Area Study Center Peshawar (ASC), University of Peshawar.
This conference has come in timely, when whole world is struggling to find ways to ensure stability in the country, he added.
Addressing the participants of the conference Resident Representative of HSF Pakistan Dr. Steffen Kudella said ” Since decades the Pakistan-Afghanistan region has been challenged by instability and fragility”.
He further explained that these challenges are not isolated events but connected with each other and also with other events worldwide. ” We can only solve them together and in a holistic way.”
He said the conference aimed at to focus such imporant regional issues and plane more activities on regional dialogue with the experts of both countries’ stakeholders.
Objectives of conducting such events is to find out ways and solutions for better connectivity, trade and other modes of mutual business amongst Asian states.
Dr. Steffen Kudella said ” We want to strengthen the regional stability in Pakistan and Afghanistan through mutual understanding and cooperation.”
Informing about the HSF work and efforts in Pakistan and South Asia, Dr. Steffen Kudella said that HSF a German political foundation and contributing a lot to bring change in several areas as the agent of change.
Dr. Shabbir Ahmad Khan, Director ASC, in his welcome address, said ” Pakistan and Afghanistan should mutually respect their sovereignty and integrity, which is the only way forward.”
The conference included speakers from Afghanistan, Germany, Uzbekistan, Australia, the United Kingdom, Singapore and Pakistan. The speakers covered topics ranging from peace, cooperation
and regional integration to opportunities and challenges vis-a-vis Afghanistan and the region at large.
To promote the culture of rigorous academic research in Pakistan, one main part of the event featured research presentations by HSF Fellows who had conducted their academic studies with the support of HSF Pakistan.
These presentations were discussed by the international and national experts at the event.
The conference was put together under the broader ambit of regional dialogue, which is interwoven with peace, democracy and development.
The conference was attended by the large numbers of students, experts from universities,besides academicians and political stakeholders from both countries, including former ambassadors and high-level government officials.
