Chinese FM to chair 3rd meeting of foreign ministers of countries neighboring Afghanistan

BEIJING, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi will host the third meeting of foreign ministers of the countries neighboring Afghanistan in Tunxi, Anhui Province, from March 30 to 31. Foreign ministers or representatives of Pakistan, Iran, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan will attend the meeting, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin announced on Monday.

Later, Wang will chair the "Afghanistan's neighbors + Afghanistan" foreign ministers' dialogue. Acting Foreign Minister of the Afghan Interim Government Amir Khan Muttaqi will be invited to attend the dialogue. The foreign ministers of Indonesia and Qatar will be invited as guests, the spokesperson said.

By hosting this third foreign ministers meeting, China hopes to build further consensus among Afghanistan's neighboring countries on the Afghan issue, discuss the "neighbors' plan" to jointly promote the stability of the situation in Afghanistan, support the Afghan people, and convey the voices of Afghanistan's neighbors to the international community, the spokesperson said.

"We hope that by hosting the 'Afghanistan's neighbors + Afghanistan' foreign ministers' dialogue, we can better understand the difficulties and appeals of the Afghan people, convey the concerns of Afghanistan's neighboring countries about the Afghan issue, encourage Afghanistan to build an open and inclusive political architecture, pursue moderate and prudent domestic and foreign policies, and effectively combat terrorism," Wang said.

"At the same time, we hope the international community will provide greater support to Afghanistan, and we call on the United States to take the primary responsibility for Afghanistan's economic reconstruction," Wang said.