Pak to back Afghanistan’s bid to SAARC membership
By Our Diplomatic Correspondent

ISLAMABAD—Pakistan, being the current Chairman of SAARC, has received the formal request from Afghanistan to join the South Asian Regional Organization. Foreign Office Wednesday while confirming that Pakistan has received the formal request and has forwarded it to the SAARC Secretariat for circulation among the member states. The Foreign Office said that the matter of Afghanistan’s membership in SAARC would however, require approval by consensus by SAARC member states. In response to question about Afghanistan’s membership of SAAC, the spokesperson of the Foreign Office Tasnim Aslam confirmed that a formal request from Afghanistan to join the South Asian Regional Organisation had been received. She stated that Pakistan had forwarded the Afghan request to the SARRC Secretariat for circulation among member states. She added that Pakistan supported Afghanistan’s membership of SARRC. The matter of Afghanistan’s membership would, however, require approval by consensus by SARRC member states, she added.