KABUL: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived in Kabul on Thursday to meet with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani as peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban have stalled and the United States is planning to reduce its military presence in Afghanistan.
Khan’s one-day visit is his first trip to Kabul since assuming office in 2018. It is the highest profile visit by a foreign official since the beginning of peace talks began between the Taliban and the Afghan government in the Qatari capital of Doha in September and comes at a time when the negotiations have hit a stalemate and violence in Afghanistan is on the rise.
Khan's arrival is also taking place days after the US administration decided to reduce its military presence in Afghanistan by January, ahead of a complete withdrawal of its forces next spring.
Many Afghan and US officials believe that Pakistan has influence over the Taliban and can convince their top leaders to move toward a ceasefire.
During a joint press conference at the presidential palace in Kabul, after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani termed the visit as "historic," Khan recalled the role Islamabad had played to persuade the Taliban to take part in intra-Afghan talks.
“We are assuring you that we will do more than your expectation," he said. "The whole idea of coming at the time that violence is increasing here is to show you Mr. President that we, the people of Pakistan and the government of Pakistan, have only one concern what you are feeling. We want peace for people of Afghanistan, which are suffering in the past four decades."
Ghani's spokesman Sediq Seddiqi told reporters after the conference that the two leaders had also discussed "mutual issues related to business, trade, economic cooperation and security."
The visit follows a new wave of mistrust between Kabul and Islamabad, as Afghanistan accuses Pakistan of harboring Taliban leaders on its soil and supporting their cross-border attacks on Afghan and foreign troops.
Islamabad has always rejected the accusations and expressed concerns that India, who has lately forged close ties with Kabul, is using Afghanistan to undermine Pakistan's security — claims New Delhi has always denied. Khan had pointed out this very concern during an Islamabad visit of Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, the head of Afghanistan’s National Council for Reconciliation and Afghanistan's chief peace negotiator.
Ahmad Saeedi, a former Afghan diplomat in Pakistan, told Arab News that with his visit Khan is trying to highlight to the world and the new US administration of President-elect Joe Biden that Pakistan plays its role in the Afghan peace process and "can break the deadlock in Afghan peace talks."
"I think Pakistan can play an important role in the peace process if it wants, when its concerns are addressed by Kabul. We know that as much as the Taliban are part of the problem, the government (Kabul) is too and Pakistan has its influence,” he said.