Members of a Taliban delegation, led by chief negotiator Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar (C, front), leave after peace talks with Afghan senior politicians in Moscow, Russia on May 30, 2019.
Photo: ReutersISLAMABAD: Afghan Taliban's visit to Islamabad would provide the opportunity to review the progress made under US-Taliban peace talks so far, and discuss the possibilities of resuming the paused political settlement process in Afghanistan, Pakistan Foreign Office said on Wednesday.The foreign office said in a statement that Pakistan extended an invitation to the Taliban's Political Commission in Doha for the visit.
The statement said program for the Taliban delegation's meeting with the foreign minister was being finalised.The delegation is said to have arrived in Islamabad and is likely to hold meetings on Thursday.Earlier reports said, the delegation of Afghan Taliban, headed by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, has agreed to meet United States Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad in Pakistan.Sources say that the delegation is aware of Khalilzad's presence in Islamabad and willing to meet him.Afghan Taliban spokesperson Suhail Shaheen earlier said that the delegation was given a formal invitation for the visit and that they would discuss &important issues& with Pakistani officials.In July, Taliban expressed willingness to meet Prime Minister Imran Khan if formally invited by Islamabad.&We often visit regional countries and would surely go there because Pakistan is our neighbour and Muslim country,& Shaheen said while talking to BBC.Taliban officials have in recent days visited Russia, China, and Iran, with the latest stop on a tour of regional powers being Pakistan after the Afghanistan peace process broke down.The United States Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation, Zalmay Khalilzad, is also in Islamabad with a five-member delegation.The US and Taliban said last month they were close to reaching a deal, despite concern among some US security officials and within the Afghan government that a US withdrawal could plunge the country into even more conflict and open the way for a resurgence of militancy.But US President Donald Trump halted the talks following the death of a US soldier and 11 other people in a Taliban bomb attack in Kabul.The Taliban also planned to follow up on Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan recent comments ahead of a meeting in New York with Trump, that he would try to convince the US president to re-enter talks, the Taliban official said.TheIndianSubcontinent has not verified the content of the source.
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