The recently-acknowledged death of Taliban leader Mullah Muhammad Omar has prompted a raft of commentary on what this means for the movement, particularly in relation to its ability and willingness to continue engaging in peace talks.
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China has said that Pakistan’s role in the Afghan peace process is commendable, ARY News reports.
The statements said that China has always encouraged talks between the Afghanistan government and the Taliban. “It is hoped that all parties would stick to the right direction, build up confidence and determination on the peace talks, and make continuous efforts to achieve lasting peace in Afghanistan“, it added.
China has lauded Pakistan’s peace and reconciliation efforts in Afghanistan and reiterated its commitment to contribute to the process.
The comments come days after Afghan leaders pointed fingers at Pakistan for the recent spate of attacks in Kabul. She said that her country also appreciates the vital role played by the concerned parties specially Pakistan in pushing forward the process.
Taliban had officially confirmed their visit to China.
In fact, Ghani’s predicament – of needing the US and wanting to begin a dialogue with the Taliban – is reflected in a statement made by the Afghan President whilst in Washington.
Therefore, some circles have noted that due to the high degree of instability in Tajikistan as a result of the government’s opposition to Islamist groups, and in view of the shaky stability in Uzbekistan, which has been brought about through suppression of Islamist groups, there are fertile grounds for the spillover of unrest from northern part of Afghanistan to Central Asia, in which case, the region will become a focus of insecurity close to borders of both China and Russian Federation.
He did say that Afghan security forces have gotten good at responding to attacks, such as the Park Palace Hotel ambush in Kabul in May: “It’s a fairly large complex, they went in, they cleared the complex, building by building, room by room”.
During a meeting between the visiting Afghan peace delegation and adviser to the Prime Minister on National Security and Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz in Islamabad on Thursday discussion were held on the revival of suspended talks with the Taliban.
Pakistan’s intelligence had knowledge about the death of reclusive Taliban chief Mullah Omar and its move to hide the news is “failure” of not only the US-Pak intelligence co-operation, but also the American intelligence as well, a former top Pentagon official has said. The [Taliban] attacks are an attempt to garner widespread coverage that ” leads to a perception that the Afghan government is unable to provide adequate security.
On Friday evening, nine people were killed when explosions and gunfire erupted at Camp Integrity, a US special forces base in Kabul.
The U.S. has been working with the Afghan police to change their tactics and procedures to better protect their forces from roadside bombs.
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Abdul Wadood Wahidi, spokesman for the Kunduz governor, said the militants had planted explosives beneath the bridge connecting Qala-i-Zal and Chahar Dara districts.
