Shoring up support: No military solution to Afghanistan, says Maleeha

Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United Nations Maleeha Lodhi has urged the international community to support the reconciliation process initiated by the Afghan government with the Taliban to promote peace and stability in the region.

These remarks have come amid reports that the Taliban and the Afghan government are set to start peace talks. Afghanistan’s deputy foreign minister has admitted that talks with “armed opponents will start soon”.

“At a time when Afghanistan faces a defining moment, the strategic shift in Pak-Afghan ties has created an optimistic regional scenario,” Ambassador Lodhi said while making her first appearance in the 15-member UN Security Council. She was participating in a debate on Afghanistan upon the renewal of the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.

While Afghanistan’s security challenges remain imposing, she said, there are encouraging possibilities about peace talks between the National Unity Government and the Taliban. “Pakistan hopes the Taliban will join the reconciliation process and respond to the Afghan government’s call for dialogue to resolve differences.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 18^th, 2015.