The Islamabad meeting. Can Pakistan break the isolation of Afghans and solve their humanitarian crisis?

The 17th Extraordinary Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Afghanistan kicked off on Sunday in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad.

Representatives of 57 Islamic countries and observer delegations are participating in the meeting to discuss the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, Pakistani media reported.

After reciting verses from the Holy Quran, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi declared the 17th extraordinary session open at the parliament building in Islamabad and delivered the opening speech of the session, according to the local newspaper Dawn.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan will deliver the keynote speech at the opening session, the newspaper reported.

The extraordinary meeting was convened at the request of Saudi Arabia in its capacity as chair of the 14th session of the Islamic Summit to "respond to the grave humanitarian crisis faced by the Afghan people."

In his speech opening the session, the Pakistani foreign minister said that more than half of the Afghan people are suffering from food shortages and millions of children in Afghanistan are at risk of dying from malnutrition.

He added that his country is "affected by the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and we cannot rule out the risk of a complete economic collapse there."

Addressing the session, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said the Kingdom "recognizes that the economic collapse and deteriorating living conditions in Afghanistan will not only be a humanitarian tragedy, but will lead to further instability and have serious consequences for regional and international peace and stability."

The Saudi minister expressed his hope that the outcomes of the meeting will contribute to providing an immediate humanitarian response to the Afghan people through the pledges of donor countries and proposed mechanisms such as the establishment of a humanitarian trust fund for Afghanistan under the supervision of the Islamic Development Bank.

"Afghanistan now stands at a crossroads and the collapse of the current situation will lead to chaos that will play into the hands of extremists and the spread of terrorism," he said.

OIC Secretary General Hussein Ibrahim Taha, who took office last month, also addressed the extraordinary emergency meeting, calling on the Afghan parties to create conditions for security and help humanitarian organizations carry out their missions.

He said the international community is more than ever required to ensure that Afghan territory is not used as a haven for terrorist groups.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi delivered a speech on behalf of the Arab bloc to the OIC meeting.

Safadi said: "We see no alternative to engaging with the Taliban government in a dialog to help Afghanistan become an active member of our international community."

"Today, Afghanistan stands at a major crossroads; either retreating towards collapse or chaos (...) or embarking on the path of recovery by pursuing a reconstruction path that respects all the rights of the Afghan people and is consistent with our Islamic and humanitarian values, human rights principles and international conventions," he added.

He also emphasized that "the Palestinian issue will remain our first central issue, and there can be no comprehensive peace and security without its solution."