Afghan envoys head to Pakistan for peace talks

Afghanistan ex-president and High Council for Peace members to hold talks with Zardari and Gilani

KABUL: Afghan efforts to broker peace with the Taliban enter a new phase this week with the first scheduled visit of envoys to Islamabad, part of a growing recognition that the process hinges on Pakistan.

Afghanistan's ex-president Burhanuddin Rabbani will arrive in Pakistan on Tuesday, with a group from President Hamid Karzai's High Council for Peace, for talks with President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani.

"There will be talks with all stakeholders about bringing peace to Afghanistan," Rabbani's deputy Ataullah Ludin told AFP, speaking about the three-day visit.

"This trip is the beginning. We cannot talk about the result now, however, we are optimistic for all peace efforts."

The move comes at the start of a crucial year for Afghanistan, limited international troop withdrawals are expected to start in July before a planned handover of responsibility for security to Afghan troops in 2014.

Karzai made negotiations a top priority in 2010, calling a national conference and creating the High Council for Peace. But attempts to open discussions with the rebels have so far got nowhere.

Media reports in November suggested a Pakistani shopkeeper posing as a senior Taliban leader was brought to Kabul for talks with Karzai before being exposed as a fake. Afghan officials deny he was ever brought to the capital.

In public, too, the government has made clear that it believes it is crucial to bringing peace to Afghanistan.

"Nothing will happen without us, because we are a part of the solution," said Gilani in October, reiterating that his government was ready to facilitate dialogue between Kabul and the Taliban.

Last week, foreign affairs ministry spokesman Abdul Basit confirmed the High Council for Peace's visit and vowed Pakistan would "continue to support and help in whatever way the Afghanistan government wants".