Karzai says Pakistan to play role in talks with Taliban

[Lahore_Real_Estate]

ISLAMABAD: President Hamid Karzai reassured on Thursday Pakistani leaders of a role in the reconciliation process with Taliban and other Afghan warring factions as his country headed for parliamentary elections this weekend.

The message was common in his interaction with both civilian and military leaders in Islamabad. The situation in Afghanistan and the political process for wooing back the militants came up for discussions during the meetings.

Mr Karzai told Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani that Kabul would enter into consultations with Islamabad over the reconciliation process a proposed high level council for talks with the warring groups was named.

The Afghan government is expected to announce the 35-member peace council soon.

The composition of the council, likely to be led by former mujahideen commander Burhanuddin Rabbani, has been discussed with the Pakistan government.

While reiterating Pakistan’s offer of support in the reconciliation process, Mr Gilani observed that it has to be an Afghan-led process, which was the only hope for a durable solution. “It was for the people of Afghanistan themselves to decide their future,” he said.

Pakistan has a strong interest in the reconciliation process that could determine the political future of a post-war Afghanistan.

In February, Pakistani security forces captured Taliban number two, Mullah Baradar, from Karachi allegedly to scuttle secret peace talks between Baradar and the Karzai administration that bypassed Pakistan.

Later, Pakistan started efforts to secure a role for the Haqqani network, the military’s long-trusted group in Afghanistan.

The initiative for roping in the Haqqanis has been on the backburner for a couple of months because of a lack of US support.

Sources said the group’s name was back in play after President Karzai’s meetings with Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and ISI chief Gen Pasha.

Mr Karzai’s visit to Islamabad in March was described as a turning point in the largely uneasy and complicated Pakistan-Afghan bilateral relations, but new irritants, particularly the inflammatory statements by Afghan leaders in the wake of Wikileaks scandal, compelled the president to put an extra emphasis on developing ties.

It was in this context the joint declaration signed at the conclusion of the visit mentioned a road map for strengthening bilateral cooperation. But inevitably, much of the emphasis was on institutional engagement on security and counter-terrorism because a big part of Pakistan-Afghan differences relate to these issues.