Pakistan will host senior diplomats from the United States, China and Russia in Islamabad on Thursday to discuss the situation in Afghanistan. Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmoud Qureshi and his national security adviser Moyd Yusuf will host the “Troika+” meeting. According to the “Dawn” report, representatives of these four countries will also meet with Amir Khan Mutaki, the Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan.
Mutaki is scheduled to arrive in Islamabad on Wednesday. This is the first visit to Pakistan by an Afghan minister since the Taliban seized control of Kabul in August. “The troika of SRs (special representative level) will meet with Mutaki,” the Pakistani official said. The dialogue took place while the Taliban sought international recognition.
However, unless the interim Taliban government fulfills its promise, the international community is not in a hurry to grant it legitimacy. “Troika+ has become an important forum for contact with the Afghan authorities. It will express support for an inclusive government and discuss ways to prevent the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and protect human rights, especially women’s rights,” he said.
This is the first official meeting of the “Troika+” after the Taliban took over Afghanistan. The last time of this format was held in Doha in August, and the United States was represented by Zalmay Khalilzad, a former special envoy for Afghanistan. Russia held another meeting in Moscow on October 19, but the United States did not participate on the grounds of “logistics.”
News Source : Hindustan Times
