ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and the United States Saturday continued efforts to convince the Afghan Taliban for talks with all the stakeholders including the Afghan government as US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad extended his stay in Pakistan.
Senior officials at the foreign ministry told The Nation that Pakistan was making all efforts for fruitful US-Taliban talks. “The Afghan Taliban insist on speaking only to the US and are till date not ready to talk to the Afghan government. Pakistan and the US are continuing efforts to bring all the parties on one table,” said an official. He said the Afghan government has also been urged to use their offices to convince the Taliban for the inclusive talks.
Another official said Pakistan only had limited influence over the Afghan Taliban and cannot ‘force’ them to accept the US demands. “Our policy is clear. We are using our influence in whatever way we can. Other parties also need to cooperate for better results,” he added.
Amid the struggle to bring Taliban to the talks table, Zalmay Khalilzad yesterday extended his stay in Pakistan. He was scheduled to travel back on January 19 but decided to stay hoping for the next round of talks with the Afghan Taliban.
The decision to hold the next round of talks between the US and Afghan Taliban in Islamabad was taken on January 18 during a meeting between the US envoy and Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
Khalilzad, who arrived in Pakistan a day ago as part of his four-nation tour, told Qureshi that the US leadership valued Pakistan’s efforts for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan. Following his meeting with the foreign minister, the US envoy also met Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Yesterday, Foreign Minister Qureshi said relations between Pakistan and the US were gradually improving. Speaking to a television channel, he said Pakistan was trying to conduct next round of talks between the US and Taliban as such kind of dialogue was in the interests of Afghan government, the Taliban and the entire region.
He said a solution to Afghan issue was not possible without intra-Afghan dialogue and Pakistan considers it vital for restoration peace in the entire region.
Prime Minister Imran Khan has also reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to facilitate the peace process in Afghanistan. Speaking to Zalmay Khalilzad here last day, the PM said peace in Afghanistan was in the interest of Pakistan.
As Khalilzad hoped to meet the Afghan Taliban and others in Islamabad, the Afghan Taliban said they were not prepared to resume meetings with Khalilzad in Islamabad and repeated their refusal to deal directly with the Afghan government.
Senior Taliban leaders said that regional powers including Pakistan had approached them and wanted them to meet the US delegation in Islamabad and also include the Afghan government in the peace process but the approaches had been rejected.
“We wanted to make it clear that we will not hold any meeting with Zalmay Khalilzad in Islamabad,” Taliban spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid said in a statement.
Taliban insist peace talks with the US delegation could resume if they assure that only three issues: US withdrawal from Afghanistan, an exchange of prisoners and lifting a ban on the movement of Taliban leaders, will be discussed.
A Pakistan foreign ministry statement issued after Khalilzad’s meetings with the Pakistani leaders had said: “The two sides reviewed developments post-Abu Dhabi (US-Taliban meeting), in order to take the Afghan peace process forward”.
Khalilzad had met Taliban representatives last month in Abu Dhabi and later visited Afghanistan, China and India as part of his four-nation trip which ends January 21. Senior US official Lisa Curtis was also in Islamabad and US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Alice Wells is expected anytime.
Before coming to Pakistan, Zalmay Khalilzad met Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, Chief Executive Officer Abdullah Abdullah, and political leaders to discuss the next steps in US efforts to support and facilitate an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process in Afghanistan.