Daily Times

KABUL/ISLAMABAD: Afghanistan on Sunday said Pakistan will present a list of Taliban willing to negotiate with Kabul at the quadrilateral meeting on Afghan peace process being held in Islamabad today (Monday).

Javaid Faisal, deputy spokesman for Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, that Pakistan’s list will include Taliban who do and do not want talks with Kabul on ending the 15-year conflict, according to Afghan state-run media.

Faisal said Pakistan has agreed to cut off financial support to Taliban fighters based in Pakistani cities, including Quetta and Peshawar. Insurgents based in Pakistan would not be allowed to resettle in Afghanistan, he said. The agreement would also include bilateral cooperation on eliminating terrorism, he added.

“Those who are interested in peace can join the dialogue, but those who wish to continue the fight will be targeted through joint counter-terrorism platforms,” Faisal said, referring to bilateral agreements.

Pakistan has consistently denied US and Afghan allegations that it gives financial or material support to Afghanistan’s Taliban.

Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States are set to meet in Islamabad today to discuss a roadmap for peace talks. The meeting will not include the Taliban.

The meeting is an effort to revive a process that collapsed last summer after Afghanistan announced that Mullah Omar, founder and leader of the Taliban, had died more than two years ago.

In a statement, US State Department spokesperson John Kirby confirmed participation in the meeting.

Islamabad will be the centre of official and unofficial activities relating to Afghanistan as besides the four-nation meeting, two unofficial meetings will also take place in the capital city.

The third round of the China-Afghanistan-Pakistan trilateral dialogue being held today (Monday) would focus on continuing the Afghan peace process with special emphasis on the role of China and Pakistan in it.

The objective is to highlight the role of China and Pakistan, as well as that of the regional countries in the pursuit of finding a peaceful resolution to the Afghan conflict, Senator Mushahid Hussain, chairman of the Pak-China Institute said.

In addition to this, Afghan and Pakistani members of parliament and defence analysts will hold a two-day track-II security dialogue in Islamabad next week with the support of the British government.

Meanwhile, a 10-member Afghan delegation comprising members of parliament, politicians, former military officials, diplomats and security experts arrived in Islamabad on Sunday for a land-mark series of Track 1.5/2 meetings and dialogues.

This initiative called “Beyond Boundaries” launched by the Centre of Research and Security Studies (CRSS) in partnership with its Afghan counterpart organisation, DURAN Research and Analysis (DRA) and sub-national partner (Pakistan), the Foundation for Integrated Development Action (FIDA) is a major Pakistan-Afghanistan Track 1.5/II dialogue as part of efforts to help improve relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan, according to a press release issued by the CRSS.

Beyond Boundaries comprises two working groups – the Regional Security Group and Civil Society and Youth Group – aimed at facilitating and promoting people-to-people contacts.

The fourth meeting in the series and the second meeting of regional security experts from Pakistan and Afghanistan is taking place from January 12-13 in Islamabad and has assumed an unusual significance because of the high profile formation of working groups from both sides and the context between the two countries.

The arrival of the Afghan regional security delegation marks the continuity of dialogue between the stakeholders from the two countries to the backdrop of a politically difficult and challenging environment.

The Track 1.5/II is also important because the bilateral relationship has been fraught with mutual mistrust being the proxy battleground for complicated regional relationships.

An unstable Afghanistan-Pakistan relationship is fundamentally detrimental to peace and development in the region. Initiatives like Beyond Boundaries will bring together influential government and non-governmental stakeholders who can help lessen tensions, address misconceptions and revive some level of confidence.

More importantly, they will eventually urge both governments and key stakeholders away from the prior behaviour of confrontation and an antagonistic approach towards a trust and collaboration based approach for peace, security and regional cooperation.

The working groups on regional security and civil society and youth will address varied themes that are important in the peace process between Pakistan and Afghanistan. It is also supposed to build upon existing and increasing future people-to-people contacts.

The key objectives of the initiative are: expanding the peace constituency through friendship groups in both countries and improving support for better Afghanistan-Pakistan relationship through dialogue among the influential stakeholders.