Deputy spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, Dawlat Waziri, told reporters on Monday that the Afghan forces have been instructed to use all force to react and stop Pakistani helicopters to assist the Taliban militants.
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The Taliban’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid would not confirm however who had represented the Taliban at the talks but has previously denied that the main Taliban group had met with the government. “Pakistan has facilitated the meeting only”, said a senior official of Foreign Office.
Qazi Khalilullah added that representatives of United States and China were also present in the talks.
The council official said the first session of talks was held Tuesday.
The meeting is one of the first clear payoffs for Ghani’s strategy, but expectations for concrete results are not high. But the foreign office remained tight-lipped about the details of meetings and arrival of the Afghan team.
There was no comment on the planned talks from Pakistani officials, but the choice of venue has some significance. Many in Afghanistan, including former-president Karzai, blame the ISI and Pakistan for harboring the Taliban, holding them partially responsible for 14 years of war.
Official efforts to open negotiations with the Taliban have borne little fruit, but informal talks have taken place several times in the recent past, veiled in secrecy.
The two sides have attempted peace talks before, but have been unable to come together at the negotiating table.
Pakistan has a tangled history with the Taliban. Pakistan’s efforts to enlist the Afghan military to flush them out have naturally raised expectations in Kabul of reciprocal action by Pakistan’s army against the Afghan Taliban. As the insurgency rages in Afghanistan, the Taliban’s leadership has taken refuge in Pakistan.
VICE News is covering the ongoing fight for the future of Afghanistan.
However, the above scenario is rather ironically (and contradictorily) corroborated by an upswing in violence in Afghanistan where the Taliban has stepped up attacks as part of its “summer offensive”.
“Any peace deal with Afghan government is possible if they (Afghan government) are ready to accept Quran and Sunnah as Supreme rulers of the Emirate (Afghanistan)”, said Afghan Taliban circles.
Sources say a statement by the Taliban is expected later on Wednesday.
The next meeting would be held at a mutually convenient date after Ramadan ends later this month, it said.
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“We also thank other partners in peace, including the United Nations, for their contribution to peace, stability and development of Afghanistan”.
