Afghan Official: Meeting with Taliban Could Happen This Month
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An Afghan official said the government expects to hold direct talks with representatives of the Taliban by the end of this month.
Ahmad Shakib Mostaghani, the Foreign Ministry spokesman, said on Sunday officials from Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States had laid out a roadmap toward peace talks at their latest meeting in Islamabad.
He says representatives of the four countries, who met Saturday, stressed a political settlement to the war, now in its 15th year, the Associated Press reported.
A meeting between Kabul and Taliban representatives within the coming weeks would be viewed as a huge step forward in a peace process that stalled last year.
The next four-country meeting is scheduled for Feb. 23 in Kabul.
