Afghan Peace Talks May Hinge on Tentative U.S.-Pakistan Thaw by Pamela Constable – Washington Post
A fresh effort by the Trump administration this week to seek Pakistan’s help in arranging Afghan peace talks has produced no signs of progress but suggests that the chill between the longtime security allies may be starting to thaw.
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan met here Wednesday with the U.S. special representative for the Afghanistan peace process, Zalmay Khalilzad; Khan’s office later said the prime minister had assured his visitor that Pakistan had “always wanted a peaceful end to the Afghan conflict” and that “reconciliation is the only solution.”
There was no public statement from U.S. officials on the meeting, and Khan’s words were carefully vague, making no mention of the U.S. request that Pakistan use its influence with the Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan to help bring them to the negotiating table.
But there were numerous reports that a delegation of four Taliban officials from the group’s political office in Qatar arrived here several days ago to hold meetings…