United Nations welcomes talks between Afghan government and Taliban

Ceasefire is a major demand from the Afghan government as Dr Ashraf Ghani’s government is seemingly helpless in countering the Taliban’s spring offensive, the official said, adding that during the dialogue held on Tuesday night at Murree, the Afghan Taliban delegation refused to ensure a ceasefire, stating that a complete ceasefire can not be guaranteed as so many groups, including militants from al Qaeda, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and Islamic State, were fighting against the Afghan government. The next meeting would be held at a mutually convenient date after Ramadan ends later this month, it added.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and a spokesman at the White House welcomed the talks which they hoped would lead to lasting peace in the region.

He said Tuesday’s meeting took place at a government rest-house and lasted for hours, starting with an iftar — the evening meal with which Muslims break the daytime fast during Ramadan — and ending with a pre-dawn meal in the early hours Wednesday.

“The participants agreed to continue talks to create an environment conducive for (the) peace and reconciliation process”, read a statement from the Pakistani Foreign Ministry.

One measure of Pakistan’s seriousness to promote peace negotiations would be the extent to which it considers President Ghani to be able to hold on to his pro-Pakistan stance.

Noting the importance of acknowledging the talks as the beginning of what could be a long and challenging process, Haysom expressed his appreciation to the parties for taking this significant first step and to the Government of Pakistan for hosting the meeting. The attack comes a week after a Taliban suicide auto bomber targeted a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation military convoy on the main road to Kabul airport, killing at least two Afghan civilians and wounding around 17.

“The Afghan side is satisfied with the kind of people who are attending this conference from the Taliban side”.

It is for the first time that such an announcement has been made about peace process between Afghans and the Taliban.

He initiated a regional policy to rally support for the Afghan peace talks both from Pakistan and China, the latter of which is believe to able to exert some influence over the Pakistani establishment.

On the Afghan side, officials said the delegation was led by Hekmat Karzai, the deputy foreign minister and a prominent cousin of the previous Afghan president.

Pakistan has been urging the Taleban’s exiled leadership to enter peace talks and the insurgents may also be motivated by the trend of some of its commanders breaking off to declare loyalty to rival militants Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

“I don’t believe the meeting can lead to a peace deal or a ceasefire because these are not peace negotiations but an effort to divide the Taliban into different groups”, he stated.

There have been several informal meetings between the Taliban and Afghan officials at venues outside Afghanistan in recent months as Kabul seeks a negotiated end to the insurgents’ 13-year fight, but little in the way of concrete progress.

The Afghan government says this is the start of “the first ever official peace talks”.

Division among Taliban leaders have been rife.