May 18, 2010

Afghanistan is close to reaching a long-delayed trade transit deal with Pakistan that would allow produce to be trucked across its neighbor to key importer India, Afghanistan’s agriculture chief said on Thursday.

A trade pact would help Afghan farmers move goods to market in India more easily, which has been a challenge as officials try to entice farmers away from growing poppy crops whose proceeds fuel the Taliban insurgency.

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“We knew at the outset that the task would be difficult. We acknowledged that publicly and privately. We knew this would be a road with many bumps— and there have been many bumps—and that continues to this day. But we are not deterred. We are, to the contrary, determined more than ever to proceed to realize the common objective, which we all share, of a Middle East that is at peace with security and prosperity for the people of Israel, for Palestinians, and for all the people in the region. We will continue our efforts in that regard, undeterred and undaunted by the difficulties, the complexities or the bumps in the road.”—George Mitchell, special envoy for Middle East peace, remarks with Prime Minister Netanyahu, September 29, 2010

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