Taliban, Haqqanis should be included in Afghan 'political mainstream': Aizaz Chaudhry

WASHINGTON: The Taliban and the Haqqani network need to part of the Afghan politics, the Pakistani Ambassador to the United States said during a talk on Friday.

In his address at the Kashmir Solidarity Day being celebrated at the Pakistani Embassy here in the city, Ambassador Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry stressed that the Afghan issue does not have a military solution.

Chaudhry was discussing the rising tensions between India and Pakistan and urged the US, as well as the global fraternity, to raise their voices against Indian brutality in Kashmir — something that has seriously aggravated over the past few days.

Pakistan's relations with the US should be based on mutual respect, the ambassador said, noting that any kind of concerns and suspicions may be detrimental to the bilateral relations.

Consequently, "apprehensions and concerns" in the linkage between Washington and Islamabad would be counterproductive to the ongoing anti-terrorism operation and significantly impact the Afghan peace and stability process.

Chaudhry also underscored that for peace to prevail in Afghanistan, its leadership needs to be consulted as well and that the Taliban and the Haqqani network need to part of the Afghan politics.

Responding to a question about the Haqqani network, Chaudhry said Pakistan's message to them and the Taliban "is very clear".

The "Taliban and Haqqanis are Afghanis and they should become part of the political mainstream in Afghanistan".

This, therefore, would make what he called a "comprehensive 'Afghan-led' and 'Afghan-owned' political solution".

"Pakistan stands firm by its commitment not to allow its soil to be used against any country and expect others to reciprocate," he said.