A Kyrgyzstan trade house was opened in Kabul during an official visit by a Kyrgyz delegation led by Economy and Commerce Minister Bakyt Sydykov, the Taliban-run commerce ministry said, as Afghanistan seeks alternative trade partners amid prolonged border closures with Pakistan.
The ministry said the trade house was inaugurated in the presence of Taliban Commerce Minister Nooruddin Azizi and private sector representatives from both countries.
According to the ministry, the facility was established under previous agreements with Kyrgyzstan and is intended to strengthen and institutionalise trade and economic relations, facilitate business-to-business contacts, increase trade volumes and encourage joint investment.
In a separate statement, the ministry said the Kyrgyz delegation also held talks with Azizi on expanding bilateral trade, identifying specific export items, developing transit routes, concluding transit agreements and attracting foreign and joint investment.
The discussions also covered the organisation of trade exhibitions and conferences and the holding of regular meetings of a joint working group, the statement said.
The statement added that both sides reaffirmed their commitment to implementing earlier agreements, including a trade and economic cooperation roadmap signed during a previous Taliban visit to Kyrgyzstan.
The move comes as Afghanistan’s main trade crossings with Pakistan have remained closed for more than two months, following an eight-day border conflict between Pakistani forces and Taliban.
Despite several rounds of talks between Taliban and Pakistani delegations in Doha, Istanbul and Riyadh, the negotiations have failed to fully resolve the tensions or reopen the crossings.
The prolonged closure has raised alarm among traders on both sides of the border, particularly Afghan importers whose goods remain stranded in Pakistan, including at the port of Karachi.
Khan Jan Alokozai, a board member of the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investment, previously told Amu TV that Afghan traders have goods worth between $6 billion and $6.5 billion stuck in Pakistani ports and border terminals.
He said more than 11,500 containers carrying Afghan imports, most of them transiting through Pakistan, remain held up, causing losses of nearly $2 million per day to traders in both countries.
