Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur’s plan of negotiating directly with Afghanistan were rebutted by the Afghan consul general on Friday. Speaking to private TV channel, Afghan Consul General Muhibullah Shakir said that negotiations between Pakistan and Afghanistan were beyond the authority of the provincial government while emphasising that it was the responsibility and mandate of the federal governments to take such steps. “Pakistan and Afghanistan are two important neighbouring countries. There is a 2700 kilometer long border between two countries. Afghanistan has just come out of war. We are ready to assist Pakistan in every possible manner in establishing peace in the region,” he reiterated. He said countries could only prosper if its people and government were on the same page.