On Monday, a delegation of the Taliban political team arrived in Pakistan to discuss the Afghan peace process with the Pakistani leadership.
The foreign office took the initiative on the basis of which a delegation of the Taliban arrived in Pakistan to discuss the Afghan peace process which is envisaged under a U.S-Taliban peace agreement signed in February.
According to Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhry reported before their arrival, “Delegation has been invited to Pakistan to discuss the way forward in the Afghan peace process”.
Read more: Recent Surge in Violence Blow to Afghanistan Peace, Experts Warn
Earlier today on Monday in a Press Conference Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told and confirmed that he would meet with the delegation of Taliban tomorrow on Tuesday.
Moreover, a senior official of Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed the foreign media that the Taliban delegation was expected to hold meetings with Pakistan’s civilian and military leadership on Monday.
The spokesman further added that the senior Pakistani officials will hold delegation talk regarding development in the peace process in Afghanistan, trade between the two neighboring countries, relaxation and facilitation of peoples’ movement, and issues related to the Afghan refugees in Pakistan and other related topics.
Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen posted on Twitter on Sunday, “A high-level Islamic Emirate [Taliban] delegation led by deputy political chief, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, has left for Pakistan upon the invitation of the country’s Foreign Ministry to discuss the latest on the peace process, state of Afghan refugees in Pakistan, [cross-border] travel of people, and trade between the two neighbors.”
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— Suhail Shaheen (@suhailshaheen1) August 23, 2020
Today, a high-level delegation led by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Political Deputy-Amir, IEA and Director of the Political Office, left for Pakistan at the invitation of Pakistan's Foreign Ministry.
The delegation will hold talks with senior Pakistani officials
However, Pakistan seems like a key regional player in facilitating February troop withdrawal that deals between the Taliban and the United Stated to begin the process of ending 18 years of war. The agreement was planned to quickly lead to talks between both governments, the Taliban, and the Afghan government but it got delayed due to Covid-19 and prisoners’ swap by both sides.
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