ISLAMABAD – Pakistan and the United States hope to finalise the settlementof the Afghanistan issue when their top leaders – Imran Khan and DonaldTrump – possibly meet in the near future, officials said.Although there was no official communication about Prime Minister Khan’smeeting with President Trump, both the sides were willing for theengagement.
“The diplomatic contacts are ongoing. Once the meeting is finalised, wehope to find some out for the Afghanistan issue. The two countries arealready supporting the peace process (in Afghanistan),” said one official.
Another official said the top-level meeting between the two uneasy allieswould not be ‘too far away.’ “We expect it soon and it would be aimed atresolving the Afghanistan issue and enhancing the trust level (betweenPakistan and the US). We hope to understand each other better after thepossible meeting,” he added.
Recently, US President Donald Trump wrote a letter to Prime Minister ImranKhan seeking Islamabad’s support in securing a “negotiated settlement” tothe war in Afghanistan.
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This came as Washington stepped up efforts to hold peace talks with theTaliban, more than 17 years after the invasion of Afghanistan. In hisletter, Trump said a settlement is “his most important regional priority”,the Pakistani foreign ministry stated. “In this regard, he has soughtPakistan’s support and facilitation”, it added.
Last month, Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad had briefed Foreign Minister ShahMehmood Qureshi about the US President’s letter written to Prime MinisterImran Khan for getting Pakistan’s cooperation regarding Afghanreconciliation process. Khalilzad had also visited Pakistan in October inhis current capacity.
