ISLAMABAD: A delegation of the Taliban Political Commission (TPC), headed by the Afghan Taliban’s top political leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, called on Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday, today, to discuss progress on peace talks between the insurgent group and the Kabul government aimed at ending decades of war.
#WATCH: An Afghan Taliban political delegation called on Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday to discuss the progress on the Afghan peace process II #Pakistan #Afghanistan
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Read Report: https://t.co/onyJMJ632u pic.twitter.com/ovnEg25Od5— Arab News Pakistan (@arabnewspk) December 18, 2020
The Taliban delegation arrived in Pakistan’s capital on Wednesday for a three-day visit, as both sides in the Afghan peace process continue consultations during a break in negotiations.
The Taliban last visited Islamabad in August, just before the peace talks with the Afghan government began in Doha as the United States pushed for a political settlement while it withdraws troops from the war-torn country.
After reaching an agreement on procedural ground rules this month, negotiators representing the government and the Taliban are taking a break until January 5 when they will continue to work on an agenda.
“Reiterating that there was no military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan, Prime Minister Imran Khan underlined that the intra-Afghan negotiations provide a historic opportunity to the Afghan leaders for achieving durable peace and stability through an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process,” a statement from the PM’s office said. “The Prime Minister expressed hope that the Afghan parties would continue to build on the recent positive developments in the intra-Afghan negotiations.”
Khan warned the Taliban team of the need to be vigilant of the “role of spoilers, who continue to make attempts to disrupt and derail the peace process” and called on all sides to reduce violence leading to a cease-fire.
“The Prime Minister highlighted that return of peace and stability in Afghanistan would provide a strong impetus to economic development, regional integration, and connectivity, benefitting Afghanistan and the region,” the PM office said. “The TPC delegation’s visit is part of Pakistan’s serious efforts to facilitate Afghan peace process to achieve a peaceful, stable, united, independent, sovereign and prosperous Afghanistan.”
