WASHINGTON: Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday said he would try meet with the Taliban in an effort to persuade the group to meet with the Afghan government, as the United States seeks to end the nearly 18-year-old war.
“I will meet the Taliban and I will try my best to get them to talk to the Afghan government,” Khan said during an appearance at the US Institute of Peace in Washington.
Khan said a Taliban delegation had wanted to meet him a few months back but he did not because of opposition from the Afghan government.
The United States and the Taliban are getting closer to a deal that is expected to be centered on a US pledge to withdraw troops in exchange for a Taliban promise not to let Afghanistan be used as a base for terrorism, officials say.
However, the Taliban have refused to negotiate with the government, denouncing it as a US puppet, but in an effort to foster Afghan reconciliation, a 60-strong delegation of citizens met the Taliban for two days of talks in Qatar from Sunday.
Pakistan’s role in the peace negotiations is a delicate one.
Afghanistan accuses Pakistan of supporting the Taliban, a charge Pakistan denies, saying it has suffered heavily from the fighting.
The United States has also pressed Islamabad to do more to curb militant groups based in its territory.
Even as talks continue, the Taliban and the government have continued fighting.
Afghan government forces mistakenly killed seven civilians, including children, in an attack on militants south of the capital, a provincial official said on Monday, the latest victims of a war undiminished by peace talks.
Pakistan Prime Minister Khan says will try to persuade Taliban to meet Afghan government
Pakistan Prime Minister Khan says will try to persuade Taliban to meet Afghan government
- Says Taliban had wanted to meet him a few months back but he didn’t due to Afghan government opposition
- Taliban have so far refused to negotiate with the Kabul government, denouncing it as a US puppet regime
Pakistan stock market sheds over 5,400 points amid US-Iran tensions, lack of risk appetite
- Trump said on Thursday he would decide in ‘10 or 15 days’ whether to order strikes on Iran if no nuclear deal is reached
- Despite the decline, the market witnessed trading activity, with 461 million shares traded and a turnover of $89 million
KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) tumbled sharply and lost more than 5,400 points on Monday, the market data showed, amid escalating geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran and a marked lack of investor risk appetite.
The benchmark KSE-100 index 5,478 points, or 3.16 percent, to close at 167,691 points on Monday as compared to Friday’s close of 173,169 points, according to the PSX website.
The development comes a day after US President Donald Trump said he would decide in “10 or 15 days” whether to order strikes on Iran if no nuclear deal is reached. Iran has said any US attack would be an “act of aggression” that would precipitate a response.
“Risk appetite remains fragile. Markets are still pricing uncertainty,” Muhammad Waqas Ghani, head of research at JS Global Capital, told Arab News.
“Investors don’t wait for inflation prints, trade disruptions, or macro data to confirm the damage, they sell first on heightened geopolitical risk.”
During the intra-day trade, the index fluctuated within the range of 174,336 to 166,886 points, largely influenced by rollover-week dynamics, according to a market review by Topline Securities.
Index-heavy constituents, including Fauji Fertilizer Company (FFC), Lucky Cement (LUCK), Engro Holdings (ENGROH), National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and Habib Bank Limited (HBL), emerged as the principal laggards, collectively dragging the benchmark down by 1,797 points during the session.
Despite the decline, the market witnessed trading activity, with total volume of 461 million shares and turnover amounting to Rs24.9 billion ($89 million). K-Electric led the volumes chart, recording over 35.9 million shares traded.
