Need to pressurise Taliban to join peace process, says Khawaja Asif

Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif remarked that bringing Taliban to the negotiating table and establishing peace and stability in Afghanistan is a shared responsibility of the international community.

Asif said there is a need for collective pressure on Taliban to shun violence and join the peace process.

Pakistan has been consistently stressing for the resolution of Afghan conflict through a political settlement, he said while addressing the Tashkent Conference on Afghanistan in Uzbekistan.

The foreign minister expressed concern over unchecked proliferation of Daesh and the phenomenal increase in drug production in Afghanistan.

Moreover, Asif also emphasised the need for a regional approach for lasting peace and stability in Afghanistan and the region.

The foreign minister reiterated Pakistan's support for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's national peace and reconciliation plan unveiled during Kabul process meeting, and his offer of peace talks to Taliban under an Afghan-led and owned process.

He emphasised the need for cooperation between Afghanistan and its neighbours to prevent cross-border movement of terrorists and criminal networks.