ISLAMABAD - JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rahman has said that after nearly a decade the world is moving from militarism to diplomacy as such the government is engaged in ending militancy through dialogue.
"The post-2014 Afghanistan will have major implications for the stability and peace in the region and that will also affect Pakistan," said Fazl in a meeting with US Ambassador to Pakistan Richard Oslon on Wednesday.
Olson said dealing with militancy is Pakistan's internal issue. "The US has no position on options of talks or operation. It is for the government of Pakistan to decide its tactics on dealing with militancy," he added.
The ambassador said that the US is fully supporting Pakistan's quest to extend its writ to areas where it feels it challenged. He said that peace and stability in Pakistan is very much in the interest of the US as well.
Monitoring Desk adds: Maulana Fazlur Rehman says armed struggle against the state is un-Islamic.
In a TV programme on Wednesday, he said he had expressed similar views in the past after which the Taliban had launched a rocket attack on his residence, the residence of his brother Ataur Rehman and the vehicle of his son.
He said a number of ulema belonging to his party had also been killed by the Taliban.
However, he said, he had never sought investigation of those incidents. Similarly, Fazl said what he said about the status of the Taliban’s armed struggle should not be taken as a reaction to those attacks.
The JUI-F is part of the ruling coalition.
The Taliban had nominated JUI-F leader Mufti Kafaitullah as a member of their committee for talks with the government. However, the JUI-F decided to distance itself from the process, insisting that they would continue to work for the success of the peace talks.
Answering a question, Maulana Fazl said although he prayed for the success of the government-Taliban talks, the key to success lay with the General Headquarters (GHQ).
He said he had given some suggestions to the prime minister to make the talks a success, but would not like to make them public. If the advice was acted upon, the flaws in the negotiations process would be effectively addressed, the JUI-F chief said.
The Maulana expressed his apprehensions about the outcome of the talks, saying ultimately the government might have to launch an operation against the Taliban.
In response to a question, he said the Swat agreement signed a few years ago was unconstitutional.
According to him, Taliban were not alone in their activities; Arabs, Tajiks, Uzbeks and some others were also involved.
NO OBSTACLE IN TALKS
WITH TTP: RASHID
INP adds: Federal Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid has said progress is being made in talks with Taliban and no hindrance has so far surfaced in this regard.
In an interview to BBC‚ he said the government was committed to establishing peace in the country through peaceful means.
The information minister said the Taliban had announced they were not involved in the attacks on polio workers.