Afghan peace negotiators meet Sharif

ISLAMABAD (PAN Television (PTV) reported.  

During the meeting, Sharif said his country was extending full support for lasting stability in Afghanistan, something that was in the interest of Pakistan as well.

In the meeting, attended among others by Advisor to PM on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, Tariq Fatimi and foreign secretary, the Afghan delegation exchanged views with Sharif on regional security.

Security cooperation between the neighbours after withdrawal of NATO-led forces from Afghanistan by the end of 2014 also came under discussion.

A day earlier, the local media reported the HPC delegation had arrived in Islamabad for meeting former Taliban Abdul Ghani Baradar.

The visiting negotiators met Pakistani officials on ways of promoting the Afghan-led peace drive, a source in the Foreign Office told Pajhwok Afghan News on condition of anonymity. 

He said the visit came after Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s acceptance of a request from Afghan President Hamid Karzai to let the HPC team hold peace parleys with the senior Taliban leader.

The agreement was reached at last month’s trilateral summit hosted by British Prime Minister David Cameron in London, where the three leaders agreed on joint efforts for advancing the Afghan-managed reconciliation campaign.  

The delegation also includes PHC Secretary Masoom Stanikzai and two other officials. The team, which was to return to Kabul Wednesday evening, extended its stay in the Pakistani capital for a day.

Islamabad freed Baradar in September in response to repeated requests from the Karzai administration, which believes the Taliban leader could play an effective role in bringing insurgent leaders to the negotiating table.

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