Islamabad: Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will leave for Afghanistan on Saturday (today) during which he will meet Kabul leadership and discuss bilateral issues and security matters of the region.

During his daylong maiden trip to Afghanistan after assuming new responsibilities, Mr Qureshi would meet Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and other senior officials.

‘The main purpose of the foreign minister’s visit is to improve coordination on security-related issues between the two countries,’ Pakistan Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry was quoted as saying by Pakistan daily Dawn.

During a telephonic conversation on September 3, Afghan Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani greeted Mr Qureshi on his appointment as foreign minister and extended him an invitation to visit Kabul.

According to Pakistan Foreign Ofiice, Islamabad-Kabul relations saw a marked improvement after both the nations agreed to operationalise the Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS), the new bilateral ties framework which provided the most comprehensive institutional mechanism to discuss all mutual issues.