The UN chief has asked India and Pakistan to strengthen their economic assistance to the war-ravaged Afghanistan. In a message to the fourth Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan in Istanbul, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also urged other countries in the region to continue to push for progress on economic cooperation. He praised the recent signing of a trade-and-transit agreement between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The message was delivered on his behalf by Staffan de Mistura, the UN chief's special representative for Afghanistan. On the agenda in the conference held yesterday was cooperation on transportation infrastructure, energy sharing and collaboration in anti-narcotics measures. The forum was created in Kabul, the Afghan capital, in 2005 and its membership has grown from 20 countries to 60. It focuses mainly on economic issues, trade, transit, transportation, energy, agriculture, and building infrastructure in Afghanistan.