Karzai visits Pakistan with peace talks on agenda

The Afghan president will press Islamabad on specific steps it can take to facilitate peace talks with the Afghan Taliban.

ISLAMABAD // The Afghan president Hamid Karzai is expected to press Pakistan during a visit that began yesterday on specific steps Islamabad can take to facilitate peace talks with the Afghan Taliban.

Pakistan is key to the peace process because of its historical ties with the Taliban and their feared ally, the Haqqani network. The leaders of both groups are believed to be based in Pakistan and in close touch with Pakistani intelligence officials.

One of the people Mr Karzai is scheduled to meet during his trip is Maulana Samiul Haq, known as the spiritual father of the Taliban because he runs an Islamic seminary in north-west Pakistan that has taught many of the group's leaders. Mr Haq has also supported the insurgency in Afghanistan.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, was also scheduled to arrive yesterday for a three-way summit with Pakistan and Afghanistan, and Mr Haq urged the leaders of the three nations to work together to push US-led forces out of Afghanistan.

"This is a time when the Taliban are defeating western forces in Afghanistan," he said. "A forceful stance by Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran will bring peace and stability in this region by pushing out the foreign forces."

The meeting comes at a time when momentum for peace talks with the Taliban seems to be growing.

The US and Afghan governments have begun secret discussions with the Taliban, The Wall Street Journal quoted Mr Karzai as saying yesterday. Mr Karzai believes most Taliban are "definitely" interested in a peace settlement, the paper said.

In a statement last night, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid strongly rejected Mr Karzai’s comments and said there had been no secret three-way discussion with the US and Afghan governments.

The Taliban are setting up an office in Qatar in the first step toward formal negotiations. Also, the Obama administration is considering releasing five top Taliban leaders from the US detention center in Guantanamo Bay as a starting point for talks.

But the success of the process could hinge on whether Pakistan chooses to cooperate and feels its interests were being addressed.

Pakistan helped the Taliban seize power in Afghanistan in the 1990s, and many members of the group, reportedly including chief Mullah Omar, streamed across the border into Pakistan after US-led forces invaded in 2001.

Pakistan has also had a close relationship with the founder of the Haqqani network, Jalaluddin Haqqani, which dates back to the war against the Soviets in Afghanistan in the 1980s.

Haqqani is believed to be based in the North Waziristan tribal region along Pakistan's north-west border with Afghanistan, while Omar is thought to be either in the capital of south-west Baluchistan province, Quetta, or in Pakistan's largest city, Karachi.

Many analysts believe Pakistan has continued to support the Taliban and the Haqqani network because they are seen as key allies in Afghanistan after Nato forces withdraw.