Afghan President Receives Unexpected Welcome in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Afghan political leaders publicly warned President Ashraf Ghani not to smile when he came to Pakistan for a global conference on Wednesday, but he soon found that to be hard going.

As the Afghan president stepped off his plane at the Islamabad airport, he was surprised to discover that the greeting party far exceeded the demands of protocol, with the Pakistani prime minister and all of the country’s military chiefs on the red carpet along with many other dignitaries, as an honor guard blasted off a 21-gun salute.