Taliban And Afghan Government Hold Talks In Pakistan

Now, even as the Taliban are making some of their biggest gains on the battlefield in years, they have appeared more willing to talk.

Sources say that Tajikistan has formally placed its concern about terrorism activities on agenda coming from border with Afghanistan. The dialogue process is in continuation of the previous sittings between both sides held in Urumqi and Doha.

The foreign ministry statement said USA and Chinese representatives were present during yesterday’s meeting.

The official, who requested not to be named as he was not authorised to talk to the media, said the Afghan side demanded immediate ceasefire by the Taliban. “I hope there will be a positive outcome which will certainly be very helpful for peace and stability in Afghanistan“, he said.

That goal was not possible with ex- president Hamid Karzai, considered too pro-India and anti-Pakistan by many in the Pakistani security establishment.

One commander told AFP on Wednesday the delegation at the talks was a “Pakistan-made group” who had “no influence in the Taliban leadership”. Unlike the Afghan Taliban, the Pakistani Taliban considered Pakistani state its enemy and carried out attacks inside Pakistan. “The United States commends the government of Afghanistan’s prioritization of peace and reconciliation efforts with the Taliban”.

Other factors may be feeding the militants’ caution, including the status of their leader Mullah Omar, about whom rumours of ill-health and even death regularly emerge, and complex relations with Pakistan.

The first round of what officials in Pakistan are calling “exploratory” talks between the Afghan Taliban and the Kabul government is the nearest the Afghan peace process has come to an attempt at a negotiated settlement in recent years.

“We again see a rivalry between the Qatar and the Pakistani process and the question is whether this is being done on objective by the Afghan government in a bid to drive a wedge between the Taliban movement or whether the Taliban are simply not saying the truth”, the expert noted.

Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani’s high risk, high rewards gamble in reaching out to Pakistan in return for Pakistan delivering the Afghan Taliban to the negotiating table seems to have paid off – for now. The meeting could be a step towards starting a formal peace process with the insurgent group, which was ousted from power by a US-led invasion in 2001. China appreciates the flexible attitude and collective willingness for convening this meeting to advance the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan.

The participants recognised the need to develop confidence-building measures to narrow down trust deficit among all stakeholders.

“Appreciating the commitment of both parties, Moon in a statement said, “(The Secretary-General) reiterates his support for an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process.

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 exchanged views on ways and means to bring peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan”, the statement said, adding that the two sides had agreed to approach the talks with “sincerity and… full commitment”.