*KABUL – A top U.S. general on Monday urged Pakistan to make a commitmenttowards reducing violence in Afghanistan and encourage Taliban to pursuepeace talks with the Afghan government.*

Addressing a joint news conference on Monday in Kabul, the commander of theU.S. Central Command, General Joseph Votel said that their role inAfghanistan is to support the Afghan peace process.

“Our role here is to be as supportive as we can be to the Afghan-led,Afghan-owned peace process. So we are gonna do everything we can to supportthat process,” he said.

General Votel, meanwhile, said that Pakistan has shown some positiveindications in the fight against terrorism in the region, but he believesIslamabad should make a commitment to helping to lower the violence inAfghanistan.

“There have been some positive indications and some things that Pakistanhas done, but what we really need, we really need Pakistan to make acommitment to helping to lower the violence here in Afghanistan and to beas helpful as it can be and encouraging the Taliban to pursue these peaceopportunities that are before us right now,” he added.

Referring to recent reports of indirect talks between Afghan Taliban andU.S. officials, the commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan General JohnNicholson said: “With respect to specific negotiations, of course, you cantalk to the State Department.”

“We are going to work with Afghanistan and we are willing to support andparticipate in these peace talks with the Taliban,” Nicholson said.

He further said that they had two peace offers on the table; theunconditional peace offer which was made by President Ashraf Ghani and anopen letter by the Taliban to the American people.

“In this letter, they outlined the basic elements of a negotiation andposition. So when you put these two positions side by side and now you havethe starting point for a negotiation,” Nicholson said.

Regarding the arrival of Afghan Vice President General Abdul Rashid Dostumin Kabul, the Nicholson said: “With respect to First Vice President Dostumreturning, from a security perspective, we hope this leads to a greaterstability in the north-west part of the country.”

“But with respect to other dimensions, it is a matter for the Afghangovernment and of course we and the United States respect the rule of law.”