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| Afghanistan | |
| Pakistain ready to help Afghan reconciliation | |
| 2010-02-05 | |
| [Dawn] Pakistan said Thursday it could play an important role in promoting reconciliation in Afghanistan and was willing to assist Afghan-led peace efforts after an eight-year Taliban insurgency. Say! How's that reconciliation thingy going in Pakistain?
"We fully agree that reconciliation and reintegration in Afghanistan is an important element to achieve peace and stability in the country," Pakistani foreign ministry spokesman Abdul Basit told reporters. "We genuinely believe Pakistan can be helpful in this process. We would like the government of Afghanistan to see how they would like to lead this process. It is also for Afghanistan to determine what role other countries can play. "Pakistan is ready to help in whatever way it is asked for.... Pakistan can play an important role in promoting genuine reconciliation," he added. Many Afghans believe Pakistan's powerful military are sponsoring the Taliban, preparing for the day US troops leave so that Islamabad can exercise influence over a Taliban government, offsetting rival power India. "We already have serious concerns about India for using Afghanistan (soil) to destabilise Pakistan," said Basit. Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates all recognised Afghanistan's 1996-2001 Taliban government, which was toppled by US-led forces after the September 11 attacks. Karzai met Saudi King Abdullah this week in what was thought to be an effort to get Saudi Arabia to coax Taliban leaders into reconciliation talks. Pakistan's army chief said Monday that his country had no interest in "controlling" Afghanistan, in a robust defence of Islamabad's policy across the border and its fight against extremists. General Ashfaq Kayani, a former director of Inter-Services Intelligence, the spy agency at the heart of US fears that Islamabad is playing a double game, said peace in Afghanistan was crucial to Pakistan's long-term interests. Kayani even offered Pakistani help in training Afghan security forces, key to Washington's exit strategy from the war in Afghanistan. | |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 ION DAILY TIMES.PK > NEW DANGERS MAY EMERGE AFTER HAKEEMULLAH'S DEATH [AL QAEDA may exploit and step in to resolve new TTP Leadership vacuum]. * SAME > TALIBAN FIND POROUS BORDERS EVEN WHERE LAW EXISTS [ + Govt Army-Police units]. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2010-02-05 22:21 |