The Pashtun Times Latest News
AFGHANISTAN: The preparatory or quadrilateral meeting of Afghanistan, Pakistan, the United States and China for talks with Taliban would be held in Islamabad on Monday.
Afghanistan would be represented by Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai and Pakistan by Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry.
The U.S. and China would be reportedly represented by their special representatives for Afghanistan and Pakistan region.
The conference would explore ways to create a consensus for talks between the Taliban and government delegations to end the bloodshed.
Iran has shown willingness to take part in the conference but has not yet received a response from the government of Afghanistan.
The quadrilateral meeting comes after the visit of Pakistan’s Chief of Army Chief (COAS) General Raheel Sharif to Kabul where he said that Islamabad would join Kabul in action against militant groups not willing to join the peace and reconciliation process.
The agreement to revive stalled peace talks with Taliban was reached during a meeting between President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani and Pakistani Prime Minister Mohammad Nawaz Sharif on the sideline of the “Heart of Asia” conference in Islamabad.
For bringing Afghan militant groups to the negotiation table, Islamabad wants Kabul to act against Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Chief Mullah Fazlullah who is responsible for some deadly attacks in Pakistan.
Islamabad claims that Mullah Fazlullah is hiding in Afghanistan. KP
