China offers to ‘host’ Afghan peace talks

Ambassador Deng rules out mediation; says Beijing wants revival of Murree Peace Process

ISLAMABAD: China has offered to host a meeting between Afghan government officials and Taliban representatives should the two sides so desire, but refused to ‘mediate’ peace negotiations between them. Speaking exclusively with The Express Tribune, China’s special envoy for Afghanistan Deng Xijun called the Taliban “one of the main forces in Afghanistan’s political arena.”

The Chinese envoy gave the interview before flying to Kabul on Sunday where he is supposed to discuss with top Afghan officials the possibility of reviving the Pakistan-brokered peace process which had collapsed in July following the official confirmation that long-time Taliban supreme leader Mullah Omar had died two years ago.





China had facilitated a meeting between Afghan High Peace Council official Masoom Stanekzai and Taliban representatives in the western city of Urumqi earlier this year. Subsequently, Pakistan hosted a rare face-to-face meeting between Afghan government officials and senior Taliban cadres on July 7 to set in motion what was later officially called the ‘Murree Peace Process’.

“We’ve already facilitated [the peace process]. We will offer facilitation again. And if the two sides agree, we will be ready to offer a venue. But we will not mediate.” Deng said. However, he insisted that the Chinese government wants the early revival of the Murree process.

“We will support Pakistan to continue playing its constructive and crucial role in the Afghan peace process,” said Deng, who visited Islamabad on Friday and Saturday two days after China’s foreign ministry announced his appointment as special envoy for Afghanistan.

Asked if he was optimistic about the revival of the stalled peace talks, he said: “I’ve spoken to Afghan leaders and senior foreign ministry and military officials of Pakistan. They all are positive about the resumption of talks. I think we can achieve the target with collective efforts.” Deng cautioned that the process would be fraught with challenges, but said “we can surmount these challenges with our joint efforts.”

Mistrust between Kabul and Islamabad is blamed for the breakdown of the Murree Peace Process. Asked if China could play a role in bridging the trust deficit between the two countries, Deng suggested the two neighbours find a solution to their problems through talks. “The best way to remove misunderstandings and to increase cooperation is to sit down and talk frankly to work out the most suitable way to push forward the peace process,” he added. Deng said he agreed with what ‘Pakistani friends’ told him in Islamabad that “you cannot solve problems by fighting.”

“A sustainable solution can only be achieved through political means. This is also China’s policy,” he said. “We hope that with joint efforts the three countries – China, Afghanistan and Pakistan – can achieve this target. It is not only in the national interest of Afghanistan, but also in the national interest of China and Pakistan, and it will also benefit the entire region, especially economic development of regional countries,” the envoy added.

About the sixth American ‘strategic review’ that envisages US troops in Afghanistan until 2017, Deng said Beijing hoped Washington would continue to handle the delicate issue of stationing troops in Afghanistan and transferring security responsibility to Afghan forces in a responsible manner. “Relevant measures should show respect for independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan and contribute to Afghanistan’s peaceful reconstruction and regional security and stability,” he added.



To a question about the role of the United States in the peace process, he said there was an understanding between Washington and Beijing to push the peace process forward.

“We need the assistance of big players, also of the US, because it had participated in the first round [of talks in Murree] and was ready to participate in the second round,” Deng said and disclosed that all “our delegates had already arrived [in Islamabad for the second round before it was called off at the eleventh hour] that shows cooperation between China, the US and Pakistan in pushing forward the Afghan peace process.” He hoped the three countries would continue these efforts.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 9^th, 2015.