Pakistan on Friday urged the Afghan government and the Taliban to endviolence and move for a cease-fire.
During a meeting with an Afghan Taliban delegation, Prime Minister ImranKhan expressed concern over the rising violence and called on all sides fora reduction in the violence leading to a cease-fire, according to astatement issued from the prime minister’s office.
The Afghan Taliban delegation, led by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, thegroup’s deputy head, arrived in Pakistan on Wednesday.
Also attended by Pakistan’s spymaster Lt. Gen. Faiz Hameed, premier Khan’sspecial representative for Afghanistan Mohammad Sadiq, and Pakistan’sAmbassador to Kabul Mansoor Ahmad Khan, the meeting at the prime minister’soffice discussed the recent progress in the ongoing peace process thatbegan in September in Qatar’s capital Doha.
Reiterating that there is no military solution to the conflict inAfghanistan, Khan underlined that the intra-Afghan negotiations provide ahistoric opportunity to the Afghan leaders for achieving durable peace andstability through an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process.
“The prime minister expressed hope that the Afghan parties would continueto build on the recent positive developments in the intra-Afghannegotiations,” according to the statement.
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The Pakistani premier also assured his country’s consistent support to aninclusive, broad-based, and comprehensive political settlement andunderlined the need to be vigilant about the role of spoilers, who continueto make attempts to disrupt and derail the peace process.
“Return of peace and stability in Afghanistan would provide a strongimpetus to economic development, regional integration, and connectivity,benefitting Afghanistan and the region,” Khan said.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Taliban delegation also met with Foreign MinisterShah Mahmood Qureshi.
This is the second delegation-level visit by the Taliban to Pakistan in thelast four months. In August, a seven-member Taliban delegation, led byBaradar, had held talks with Foreign Minister Qureshi and spy chief Lt.Gen. Hameed.
