Islamabad - Tribal and political leaders from Afghanistan
and Pakistan decided Tuesday to jointly approach Taliban militants
for reconciliation in a bid to end the Islamic insurgency in both
countries.
'We agreed that the contacts should be established with the
opposition (the Taliban) by both sides - joint contacts through the
jirga,' former Afghan foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah told
reporters after the conclusion of two-day tribal assembly, or jirga,
in Islamabad.
Abdullah, who headed the 20-member Afghan delegation, said the
contacts groups would be set up before the next meeting of the jirga,
to be held in Kabul in two months.
Islamabad's tribal jirga was a follow-up to a grand assembly in
August 2007 in Kabul, which sought a conciliatory approach to tackle
militant violence that has hampered social and economic progress in
both countries.
Abdullah said Pakistan and Afghanistan would continue to work
together against terrorism, a global problem, which caused suffering
to the people of both countries.
However, he made it clear that negotiations with the Taliban would
take place only if they agreed to accept the 'the supremacy of the
constitutions of both countries.'
The Pakistani side of the meeting, which was endorsed by the
governments of the two neighbouring countries, was led by Owais
Ghani, governor of North-West Frontier Province.
Afghan Foreign Minister Rangin Dadfar Spanta last week confirmed
that his government had recently talked to a Taliban representative
in Saudi Arabia, but the militants, in a statement posted on their
website, said peace negotiations could not take place unless the
foreign troops pull out of Afghanistan.
The idea of resolving conflict in Afghanistan, especially through
contacts with Taliban leaders ready to denounce violence and join the
mainstream political process, has been reluctantly embraced by the US
and other Western allies in the fight against international
terrorism.
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