ANP chief wants Kabul to lead peace negotiations

PESHAWAR (Pajhwok): A veteran Pakhtun nationalist has called for the immediate resumption of Afghan peace negotiations.

Awami National Party (ANP) chief Asfandyar Wali Khan said the Pakhtuns on both sides of the Durand Line had been bearing the brunt of violence.

During a recent meeting with President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul, he said: “Peace talks should be resumed. The dialogue will be acceptable to when the Afghan government leads it.”

In a statement from the Bacha Khan Markaz, the provincial secretariat of the party, he warned peace talks without the Afghan government would be futile.

He urged global powers, including Russia, China and the United States, to step up efforts for a negotiated end to the conflict in Afghanistan.

Asfandyar Khan called for the Pakistan government to immediately launch a train service for the promotion of trade with Afghanistan.

The ANP head underlined the need for allowing peoples of the two countries to travel freely across the border for the sake of friendly relations between the neighbours.

President Ghani concurred that Pakhtuns on both sides of the border had paid a heavy price for the ongoing civil war in the region.

Ghani added he had made it clear to the Pakistan government that it should sincerely extend a hand of friendship to Afghanistan if it wanted to eliminate poverty, energy crisis and other issues.

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