Afghan endgame: In negotiation process, Kabul told to be ‘realistic’

Pakistan to use ‘all available means’ for reconciliation with Taliban, says official.

ISLAMABAD:

When Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani urged the Afghan resistance groups, including the Taliban, last month to hold direct peace negotiations with the Karzai government, it was not mere rhetoric.

The first such public appeal by Pakistan was part of a new strategy between Islamabad and Kabul during the recent visit of Afghan President Hamid Karzai to further the peace process in the war-torn country.

Pakistan, which is considered crucial for the Afghan endgame, has assured Afghanistan of using ‘all available means at its disposal’ to bring the insurgents to the negotiating table, disclosed a senior official familiar with the matter. However, Kabul was told to have ‘realistic’ expectations from Islamabad regarding its role in the peace talks.

The official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, told The Express Tribune that contrary to widely-held perceptions, history shows that the Afghan Taliban have not always listened to Pakistan.

“So expecting that we will bring certain individuals to the negotiating table is certainly not realistic,” he said.  “Having said that, Pakistan is open to discussions, if Afghanistan is clear about Pakistan’s role.”

Afghan officials believe that not only does Pakistan have influence on the Afghan Taliban but it protects its (Taliban’s) senior leadership - a claim that Islamabad denies.

However, the official maintained that the dynamics of the Pakistan-Afghan bilateral relations are ‘a lot different than what is portrayed by the media.’

The level of trust-deficit between the two neighbours has considerably narrowed down in recent weeks due to hectic diplomatic efforts, he added.

In an interaction with a group of journalists, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar said that Pakistan is willing to support the Karzai government in its efforts to reach out to insurgents. “We will support any and all initiatives that are all-inclusive, that are Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-driven,” Khar said explaining Pakistan’s position on the reconciliation process.

However, she did not say whether Pakistan had recently taken any specific steps to convince the Afghan government regarding its seriousness. “We have assured President Karzai that Pakistan would want to be seen supporting, not leading, the reconciliation process,” she said.

She maintained that the centre of gravity must be Kabul for any process leading to a political settlement to the decade-long conflict in Afghanistan.

In this context, she explained, Pakistan made a rare public appeal urging all Afghan groups to come to the negotiating table for an intra-Afghan dialogue.

Her remarks indicate that Islamabad is not really keen in the Qatar process currently led by the United States to have direct talks with the Afghan Taliban. But the foreign minister insisted that Pakistan would not create any hurdles in any peace initiative. “We have done nothing to block any other initiatives anywhere,” Khar said.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5^th, 2012.