WASHINGTON – United States Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin Friday called onthe international community to engage the Afghan government and insurgentsfor a negotiated settlement in the war-torn country.Ads by BIDSXCHANGE
Taking it to his official Twitter, Austin wrote that “The securitysituation in Afghanistan only argues more for international pressure tohave a negotiated political settlement to end this conflict and give theAfghan people (the) government they want and they deserve.”
Soon after the speech of the US President, Austin urged the internationalcommunity to end conflict saying “The entire world can help by continuingthis push.”
However, the 67-year-old retired US Army four-star general did not specifythe countries he was urging to help secure a settlement.
The call for help from the senior US official comes a day after PresidentBiden announced that the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, after nearly twodecades of war, would be completed by end of next month.
On Wednesday, US State Department spox Ned Price stated that Pakistan andthe United States have shared interests of peace and stability inAfghanistan.
“Pakistan has been a helpful and constructive partner when it comes toAfghanistan. The US administration is hopeful over collective efforts ofthe US and Pakistan to bring a semblance of peace and security here inAfghanistan” Price revealed saying that “Pak-US relations go far beyond theinterests of regional security and counter-terrorism cooperation.”
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Meanwhile, an Afghan government delegation met with Taliban representativesin Iran’s capital, hosted by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
The Afghan government and the Taliban have agreed that “war is not thesolution to the Afghanistan problem” and that all efforts must be made toresolve all political issues peacefully.
According to a joint statement released after the talks between the Afghangovernment and the Taliban representatives in Tehran, the two sides agreedto continue talks on the mechanism of establishing an Islamic state at alater meeting.
On the other hand, Pakistan’s Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed saidthat Pakistan is closely monitoring the situation after the US exit fromAfghanistan and would not allow the use of its territory against anyone.
