Mohammad Sadiq resigns as Pakistan’s special envoy on Afghanistan

Mohammad Sadiq has resigned Special Representative for Afghanistan

The prime minister accepted the resignation of SAPM Mohammad Sadiq

Sadiq was appointed to the post in June 2020

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Ambassador Mohammad Sadiq, has resigned from his post.

The prime minister accepted the resignation of Special Assistant Mohammad Sadiq. Cabinet Division has issued a notification stating that Mohammad Sadiq resignation from the post of SAPM has been accepted with immediate effect.

The veteran diplomat stepped down as Pakistan’s special representative to Afghanistan. He expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for unwavering support during his tenure as special representative.

“After serving close to three years as Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, I have requested the government that the time had come for me to move on and focus on my personal pursuits — family, books and agriculture/environment,” he said in a series of tweets.

Sadiq said that he was grateful to the prime minister and all the other stakeholders for their “wholehearted support” to him as the special envoy.

“I deeply appreciate the hard work of many of my colleagues who spent long hours to make the Pakistan-Afghanistan relationship work,” he added.

1. After serving close to three years as Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, I have requested the Government that the time had come for me to move on & focus on my personal pursuits – family, books and agriculture/environment.

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— Mohammad Sadiq (@AmbassadorSadiq) March 1, 2023

Sadiq was appointed to the crucial Afghan position in June 2020. He previously served as Pakistan’s ambassador to Kabul from 2008 to 2014.

He was a career diplomat who retired in 2016 from the position of secretary of the national security division. He also served as Foreign Office spokesperson for about one and a half years.

He was also posted in Washington DC (1998-2000), Beijing (1994-1998) and Brussels. He played a key role in Pakistan’s efforts to bring the Afghan Taliban to the negotiating table in 2018 in talks with the United States.

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