Pakistan effectively shuts the key crossing into Afghanistan to truck drivers
The Hindu
Pakistan effectively closed a key northwestern border crossing with Afghanistan to truck drivers on Saturday, Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban said.
Pakistan effectively closed a key northwestern border crossing with Afghanistan to truck drivers on Saturday, Afghanistan's ruling Taliban said.
Noor Mohammad Hanif, director of Information and Culture department in Afghanistan's eastern Nangarhar province said that officials at the Torkham began asking for passports and visas from Afghan drivers.
Truckers have for years been able to pass the border without documents so they generally do not have them.
Mr. Hanif said that, in response, Afghanistan is now asking Pakistani drivers for passports and visas.
In a separate statement, the Nangarhar governor’s office said that officials from both sides are in talks to solve the problem, and a “decision will be made soon,” it added.
The Torkham border crossing has been closed a number of times in recent months, including in September when it was shut for nine days due to clashes between border forces.
On Saturday, dozens of trucks carrying perishable items, including vegetables and fruits, waited on each side of the border for the reopening of the crossing, which is a vital commercial artery and a trade route to Central Asian countries for Pakistan.
The 29th edition of the Conference of Parties (COP29), held at Baku in Azerbaijan, is arguably the most important of the United Nations’ climate conferences. It was supposed to conclude on November 22, after nearly 11 days of negotiations and the whole purpose was for the world to take a collective step forward in addressing rising carbon emissions.