Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Friday terrorism, extremism and drug trafficking have roots in unwanted and unhelpful foreign interventions.
Speaking at the 4th Ministerial Conference of Istanbul Process on Afghanistan in the Chinese capital, Zarif said, “Unfortunately, such increasing threats create difficult conditions for countries in the region and are mainly rooted in foreign political intervention,” IRNA reported from Beijing.
“Let us hope that with the departure of foreign forces from Afghanistan, one of the real causes for the expansion of extremism in the region will be eliminated, because most of the current regional problems are the result of overt and covert intervention of selected countries,” he said.
The Istanbul Process was launched in 2011 as a platform for regional and neighboring countries to discuss and promote coordination aimed at restoring security and stability to war-battered Afghanistan.
On the sidelines of the meeting Zarif met the Pakistani prime minister’s adviser for national security and foreign affairs, Sartaj Aziz, on Friday.
He was also scheduled to hold talks with senior Chinese officials to discuss ways to foster two-way ties.
