Posts published in “Day: January 13, 2016”

The first round of the consultations between officials of Afghanistan, Pakistan, the US and China on how to revive the stalled peace process in Afghanistan has concluded with the agreement that there is a need for an immediate recommencement of direct dialogue between the Taliban and the Afghan government. Significantly, the quadrilateral group has also come to terms with the reality that the Taliban cannot be conceived of and engaged with as a monolith since…

There is a lot of talking going on, much of it very quietly and not all of it in the public domain. The talks with India due to happen at security adviser level look like they have survived the impact of the Pathankot attack; and now the direct talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban may be expected to resume within days as a quartet of officials from Afghanistan, Pakistan, America and China met…

A Pakistani intelligence official has claimed that the Taliban are expected to resume talks with the Afghan government. This affirmation of their participation is a positive development in light of the recent quadrilateral meeting in Islamabad when diplomats from four countries met to chalk out a roadmap for Afghanistan peace talks. Senior diplomats from Pakistan, Afghanistan, China and the United States met in Islamabad on Monday and it was decided that the next round of…

Reviving talks between the Afghan government and Taliban factions is not going to be an easy task. The Afghan reconciliation process was stalled this summer after the death of Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar was confirmed. Since then, the Taliban have gained strength, mounting a number of strong attacks in Afghanistan. The relatively weakened government of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has had to face internal dissent for its reconciliation policy with the Afghan Taliban and…

THERE appears to be an understanding of what needs to be done but no clarity on how to achieve it. The first quadrilateral meeting on Afghanistan has ended with a public emphasis on the urgent need for direct talks between the Afghan government and the Afghan Taliban — a sensible and welcome emphasis that is clearly the only way ahead for a political settlement in that country.Yet, there are clearly continuing differences over how to…

A senior Taliban leader has been killed along with his ten fighters in western Farah province of Afghanistan, local officials said Tuesday. The Taliban insurgents along with their leader were killed after ambushing a convoy of the Afghan national security forces in Andar Dara district. Provincial police chief Toryalai Abadyani confirmed the death of the senior Taliban leader along with his ten fighters. According to Abadyani, the Taliban leader killed during the gun battle has…

Kabul (Tolo News):  Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Sunday warned certain Taliban factions against refusing to accept the peace process, adding that government will consider severe military action against those that continue to destabilize the country. The remarks come a day ahead of a key meeting between representatives from Afghanistan, Pakistan, U.S and China in Islamabad to map out the peace framework with the militant group. Last July, Pakistan hosted the first round of…

Afghanistan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai who is leading his country in the preparatory discussions with Pakistan, U.S. and China for reviving the stalled peace talks with Taliban says the nation should witness a change in two months. While talking to a press conference on Tuesday about his recent visit to Islamabad for the quadrilateral meeting, Karzai said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has prepared a roadmap for peace talks which is also okayed…

The writer is a lawyer and columnist based in Lahore. Pakistan and India formally announced to initiate the ‘Comprehensive Bilateral Dialogue’ during Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj’s visit to Pakistan last month. It was decided that the so-called Comprehensive Bilateral Dialogue would include all the pillars from the previous ‘Composite Dialogue’ and the later ‘Resumed Dialogue’ besides the additional points. Now, the Foreign Secretaries of both countries are scheduled to meet in Islamabad on January…

The writer is a former COAS, Pakistan There is a design behind Modi’s unscheduled visit to Jaati Umra, (not to Pakistan) on 25th December 2015, because his image as a hard-line nationalist leader, drawing fervour from the concept of Hindutva of his followers, is in conflict with secular India thinking. This has caused growing political opposition within the country and soured relations with neighbouring Pakistan, a situation which is politically harmful for him, limiting his…