12/10/2010
Afghan peace talks cannot succeed without Pakistan: Gilani
Peshawar, Oct 12 (PTI) Pakistan has a vital role to play in ongoing talks between the Taliban and Afghan government, Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani said today asserting that "nothing can happen without us".
"Nothing can happen without us. We are part of the solution, we are not part of the problem," Gilani told reporters while replying to a question on whether Pakistan is on board in ongoing talks between the Taliban and Afghan government.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai yesterday confirmed holding unofficial talks with the Taliban "for quite some time," in a bid to end the nine-year war.
Many analysts believe Pakistan is keen to see the Taliban''s return to power in Kabul to act as a counterweight to India. This has raised questions about how Pakistan and its spy agency ISI would use their influence with the Taliban during any negotiations.
Reports yesterday said that a Pakistani government delegation had participated in peace talks between Taliban representatives and Afghan officials in Kabul last week.
The Pakistani delegation joined the talks held at Kabul''s Serena Hotel on October 6, the US government-funded Radio Free Europe-Radio Liberty (RFE- RL) reported.
But, Gilani refused to comment whether his country backed Karzai''s ambitious plan for reconciliation with militants.
"When Karzai shares his roadmap with America and they share the roadmap with us, then we will be in a position to comment on it," he said.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment