Pakistan, Afghanistan move closer ahead of London talks

[Devil Soul]

Pakistan, Afghanistan move closer ahead of London talks
By: Sikander Shaheen | January 29, 2013
ISLAMABAD – Appreciating Pakistan’s role in the renewed peace process, a top Afghan official has ‘thanked’ Pakistani government for the release of Afghan Taliban prisoners while Islamabad’s military establishment has assured that it ‘fully’ supports Afghan-led settlement in the war-torn country. The development is said to have followed a meeting between Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and visiting Defence Minister from Afghanistan General (r) Bismillah Khan Muhammadi at the General Headquarters (GHQ) on Monday.General Muhammadi led a high-level five-member delegation that met the top military officials from Pakistan. Apart from the group meetings, a separate meeting between the Afghan minister and General Kayani was also held, military officials said.This meeting comes against the backdrop of the forthcoming trilateral summit on Afghanistan in London.

The two-day event (February 3-4) is expected to draw future contours of negotiated settlement in Afghanistan with the active involvement of Pakistan.Afghan Military Operations Director General (DG MO) Major-Gen Afzal Aman, who was also among the five-member Afghan team, had earlier met Peshawar Corps Commander Lt-Gen Khalid Rabbani and he is reportedly playing key role in the renewed Pak-Afghan strategic commitments on cross-border coordination and cooperation.“We fully support Afghan-owned and Afghan-led peace process as a stable and peaceful Afghanistan is in the best interest of both the countries,” the military officials quoted Gen Kayani as telling Muhammadi.

Sources said that the Afghan minister thanked the Pakistani government for the release of Afghan Taliban saying “this is going to play a very positive role in the peace process”. Gen Muhammadi is further said to have appreciated what he described as Pakistan’s‘ efforts to fight terrorism and sacrifices rendered by the nation while “condoling with the grieved families”.

According to the military officials, both sides agreed that security of both the countries was “inextricably linked with each other”. The meeting, officials said, was an expression of the ‘growing realisation’ that Pakistan held ‘centrality’ in the eventual negotiated settlement in Afghanistan.

The two sides are also reported to have reviewed the measures on border coordination and cooperation to prevent cross-border attacks from both the sides against one another.

Apart from General Muhammadi, all the other four members of the Afghan delegation are serving Afghan Major Generals who visited GHQ reportedly to meet their Pakistani counterparts.

They are: DG MO Afzal Aman, Military Intelligence and Investigation DG Abdul Manan Farahi, Training Inspector General Payanda Mohammad Nazim and National Defence College Afghanistan Commandant Aminullah Karim.They met Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) DG Lt Gen Zaheerul Islam, Military Intelligence (MI) DG Major Gen Noshad Kayani, Training and Evaluation Inspector General Lt Gen Raheel Sharif and National Defence University (NDU) Commandant Lt Gen Nasir Janjua in the group meetings, the officials said.

“The two sides discussed matters of professional interest, with particular focus on enhancing mutual defence cooperation and measures that Afghan National Army and Pakistan Army intend initiating for an enduring training relationship,” a Pakistan Army statement said.

Operationalisation of recently concluded agreement on Tripartite Border Standing Operating Procedures was also discussed in detail. The agreement is aimed at improving existing security cooperation and intelligence sharing mechanisms, on both sides of the Pak-Afghan border, the statement added.

Pakistan’s military relationship with Afghanistan and International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) stays on a positive path amidst reports that Islamabad is expected to get a key strategic role in the renewed Afghan peace process.

Pakistan released over a dozen Taliban detainees, after successful negotiations with Afghanistan’s High Peace Council in November and December 2012.Last week, the commanders from the three sides had pledged continuing cooperation against the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) by the militants.

In the 36th meeting of the Tripartite Commission held in November last year, the three forces had signed Tripartite Border Coordination Mechanism for enhanced border coordination and cooperation.

Agencies add: Afghan Defence Minister Bismillah Khan also called on President Asif Ali Zardari on Monday and discussed matters of defence cooperation and war on terrorism. Talking to him‚ President Zardari said Pakistan gives much importance to its ties with Afghanistan.

The president said that Pakistan has always taken principled stance to support efforts intended to bring peace, prosperity and stability to Afghanistan.

He said that Pakistan will continue to support an Afghan-led peace process in the brotherly state.President Zardari reiterated that Pakistan has abiding interest in the stability, prosperity and development of Afghanistan and it was ready to contribute its share for the capacity building of Afghan institutions.

Afghan defence minister expressed his country’s desire to promote defence relations with Pakistan.
Pakistan, Afghanistan move closer ahead of London talks | The Nation

 

[Devil Soul]

Kabul willing to consider Pak offer to train forces
From the Newspaper | Baqir Sajjad Syed |
ISLAMABAD: Putting aside years of mistrust, the Afghan government indicated on Monday its willingness to consider Pakistan’s longstanding offer of training its armed forces.

This sense was conveyed during Afghan defence delegation’s meeting with Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani at the military headquarters.

The Afghan delegation led by Defence Minister Gen Bismillah Khan Muhammadi, which is on a five-day visit to Pakistan, included Major General Afzal Aman, Director General of Military Operations; Major General Abdul Manan Farahi, Director General Military Intelligence and Investigation; Major General Payanda Mohammad Nazim, Inspector General of Training; and Major General Aminullah Karim, Commandant of National Defence College, Afghanistan.

The rare visit of the high-level Afghan defence delegation denoted a paradigm shift in Afghanistan’s perceptions about Pakistan.

Because of years of disinformation, Afghan authorities had always sceptically looked towards Pakistan believing that the former ally of Taliban was opposed to the current set-up and was backing Taliban insurgency.

It was this opinion that prevented Afghanistan from considering Pakistani offer to train its troops, which was originally made in 2010 by Gen Kayani. Afghan President Hamid Karzai had at a meeting with journalists last February dismissed the offer as a non-starter till Pakistan rebuilt confidence by addressing Kabul’s concerns about its involvement with Taliban terrorists.

The defence team’s visit, however, suggested that Afghans were finally convinced about the centrality of Pakistan in the reconciliation process.

“Both sides showed understanding for the fact that not only the geography, history and culture, but also the destiny of the two countries was shared. This makes it imperative for the two countries to move forward with a joint approach on important national and regional issues, and have a joint strategy on security issues affecting either of two countries, or both,” a military source said after the meeting at the General Headquarters, while referring to unanimity of views and the cordial atmosphere at the talks.

The Afghan delegation will visit the Combat Training Centre in Lehri (near Jhelum), School of Infantry and Tactics in Quetta, Pakistan Military Academy, Kakul, and Staff College, Quetta, to inspect the training facilities.

At the Tokyo Conference on Afghanistan last July Pakistan had committed $20 million assistance for Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF). The aid was largely to be spent on capacity building and technical assistance for the Afghan forces.

The two sides discussed cross-border attacks from Afghanistan’s Kunar and Nuristan provinces into Pakistan and agreed on better border coordination and control to prevent them in future.

Another important agreement was to make border control mechanism a bilateral affair instead of a trilateral one involving the US-led International Security Assistance Force.

While discussing peace and reconciliation efforts, Gen Kayani reiterated Pakistan’s desire for a peaceful, stable and united Afghanistan, and Gen Mohammadi of complete support to bring normalcy in border regions to make conditions conducive for drawdown of Isaf forces in 2014.
Pakistan as part of its commitment to aiding peace process in Afghanistan had released several senior Afghan Taliban figures.

Afghan defence minister thanked Pakistan for releasing the detained Taliban leaders and noted that move would play a positive role in the peace process.
Kabul willing to consider Pak offer to train forces | Pakistan | DAWN.COM

 

[muse]

Please read critically:


Cameron set for talks with Pakistan and Afghanistan

LONDON: British Prime Minister David Cameron will meet the leaders of Afghanistan and Pakistan this weekend as part of moves to prevent a Taliban resurgence when foreign troops leave, Downing Street said on Saturday.

The premier will dine with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari at his country retreat Chequers in Buckinghamshire, southeast England, on Sunday.

Cameron will then hold the first in-depth top-level talks with both leaders and their key officials on Monday.

“The Prime Minister will host the leaders of Afghanistan and Pakistan at Chequers on Sunday and Monday as part of his ongoing efforts to help to strengthen Afghanistan-Pakistan relations, support an Afghan peace and reconciliation process and promote regional peace and stability,” a Downing Street spokesperson said.

“For the first time, we will bring together the political and security establishments from both Afghanistan and Pakistan, with foreign ministers, chiefs of army staff, chiefs of intelligence and the chair of the Afghan High Peace Council attending the meeting.

“Discussions are expected to focus on the Afghan-led peace process and how the Pakistanis and international community can support it. We also expect the Afghans and Pakistanis to make further progress on the Strategic Partnership Agreement they committed to in September.”

Karzai flew to London on Saturday for a three-day trip, during which time he will also meet Prince Charles. “The talks in this summit will be focused on ways to accelerate peace process in Afghanistan and further strengthen cooperations between Afghanistan and Pakistan in the fight against terrorism and extremism,” said a separate statement issued by Karzai’s office.

Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan remain uneasy, despite some recent improvements.

Pakistan, the chief diplomatic backer of the Taliban, when the group was in power before 2001, has been regularly accused by both Kabul and Washington of helping destabilise Afghanistan.

Back in December, Cameron had announced Britain would withdraw 3,800 of the country’s 9,000 troops from Afghanistan in 2013, as NATO prepares for a full security handover to Afghan forces at the end of next year.

There are growing concerns that a civil war could erupt as the US-led NATO troops leave the country. Monday’s talks will meanwhile be the third trilateral session since summer last year, after meetings in Kabul in July and in New York in September.

“This trilateral process sends a very clear message to the Taliban: now is the time for everyone to participate in a peaceful political process in Afghanistan,” the spokesperson added. “As the Prime Minister has set out previously, a stable Afghanistan is not just in the interests of Afghans, but also in the interests of their neighbours and the UK.

“We share the same vision for Afghanistan: a secure, stable and democratic country that never again becomes a haven for international terror.

“We are working together to achieve it and Afghanistan’s neighbours have a vital role to play. It is vital not just for the future security of their citizens, but for their prosperity too.”

Meetings of the three leaders will spread over more than one session and Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and Director General ISI will also participate in the meetings.

As the deadline for withdrawal of NATO and ISAF forces draws near, there is added urgency in the efforts of international community to foster a political settlement between Afghan government led by President Hamid Karzai and Taliban to keep Afghanistan peaceful and stable.

Afghanistan’s High Peace Council led by Salahuddin Rabbani has enhanced its role by holding meetings with leadership of countries, which have been playing important part to bring along disparate groups in Afghanistan for permanent political reconciliation. agencies

 

[Devil Soul]

US backs Chequers Summit’s peace call for Taliban
By: Special Correspondent | February 06, 2013
WASHINGTON - The US has backed a call issued by leaders of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Britain at their Chequers Summit to Taliban to join the peace process.

“That’s what we’re looking for and we call on Taliban to take the steps necessary to open the office in Doha and enter into real dialogue with the High Peace Council,” State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland told reporters, while endorsing the joint statement issued by the third trilateral summit.

“We fully endorse the contents of the joint statement that the three governments came forward with, and we are committed to supporting an Afghan-led process,” she said while responding to a question at the daily press briefing.

Nuland referred to the last month’s meeting between President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Washington and said the two leaders reaffirmed that an Afghan-led peace and reconciliation process was the surest way to end the violence and ensure lasting stability in Afghanistan as well as in the region.

“We believe that the UK-Afghanistan-Pakistan Chequers Summit that occurred this weekend was clearly an advance in this process,” the spokesperson added. “Our goal here has been to support the creation of a process to make it possible, both in the work that we’re doing with the Afghan government, the work that we’re doing with the government of Pakistan and the three of us together through the core group, and our support for the opening of the office in Qatar under the right circumstance, to make it possible for willing Taliban participants to talk directly to the Afghan High Peace Council,” Ms Nuland said.

“That’s what we’re looking for, and we call on the Taliban to take the steps necessary to open the office in Doha and enter into real dialogue with the High Peace Council. The goal for everybody should be an inclusive political order in a strong, unified, sovereign Afghanistan,” she said. “The goal for everybody should be an inclusive political order in a strong, unified, sovereign Afghanistan, she concluded.”

 

[Devil Soul]

Taliban dismiss London talks on Afghan war
By AFP Published: February 6, 2013
KABUL: A Taliban spokesperson on Wednesday dismissed the outcome of a conference in London between the leaders of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Britain which aimed to work towards a peace deal within six months.

The conference and other “horse trading” were “the real obstacles of effective and fruitful negotiations between the factual sides,” Zabihullah Mujahid wrote on the Taliban’s website.

This is apparently a reference to the Taliban’s repeated demand that any peace negotiations should be between itself and the United States.

The Taliban in March 2012 suspended contacts with American representatives in Qatar over a potential prisoner exchange and opening a liaison office in the Gulf state.

The militia has consistently refused to negotiate directly with the Western-backed Kabul government, against whom it has been waging an insurgency for 11 years.

Mujahid wrote that Western forces facing military defeat use such conferences as propaganda to conceal the deadlock in the country and “show that some activity and progress is going on.”

US-led NATO combat forces are due to withdraw from Afghanistan next year, and efforts to negotiate peace have gained urgency as they seek to leave with some dignity.

Mujahid told AFP by telephone that the views in the lengthy “article” posted on the Taliban’s website would be followed soon by an official Taliban response to the conference

 

[muse]

Mr.Mujahid complains that the people are talking to everybody but the Talib, however, what's stopping the Talib from talking to everyone?

Mr. Mujahid appears disingenuous with such complaints.