Zalmay meets Qureshi, Gen Bajwa

ISLAMABAD: The US envoy on Afghanistan's peace process Zalmay Khalilzad on Friday met Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa.According to the Army spokesperson, Khalilzad, Gen Bajwa, and the United States' ambassador to Pakistan, Paul Wayne Jones, discussed regional security and exchanged thoughts on the Afghan peace process.

"Zalmay Khalilzad, US Special Rep for Afg Recon called on COAS at GHQ. US Amb in Pakistan Mr Paul W Jones was also present,” Major General Asif Ghafoor said in a statement on Twitter.

“Regional security situation with particular reference to ongoing Afg recon process was discussed,” the spokesperson added.

Khalilzad arrived in Pakistan earlier Friday from Qatar’s capital, Doha, and was escorted from Islamabad International Airport (IIAP) under special security arrangements.

After his arrival, the US envoy met FM Qureshi and discussed the Afghan reconciliation process with him. According to the Foreign Office, the two also talked about the overall situation of the regional peace and stability. The minister, in this regard, noted that Pakistan was of the viewpoint from day one that the use of power was not the solution to the Afghan conflict. Islamabad expected the US-Taliban talks to resume soon, he added.

Qureshi also underscored that the regional peace and stability was closely linked to peace in Kabul and that Pakistan would continue to play its reconciliatory role in the Afghan peace process as part of collective responsibility. Khalilzad, on the other, apprised the minister on the delegation-level talks between the US and Afghan Taliban. He also lauded Pakistan’s role in the Afghan peace process.