CHINA SPECIAL ENVOY VISITING TALIBAN POLITICAL OFFICE IN QATAR: AMBASSADOR

  Wednesday, 23 January 2019

source: shiitenews

Ambassador Yao Jing has said that China has contacts with both the Taliban and the Afghan government and has cdeputed a special envoy who is visiting the Taliban’s political office in Doha (Qatar)
He said this answering a question at a roundtable conference at the Area Study Centre, University of Peshawar, on Tuesday.
“China will pick them (Taliban) as a political force because they are now part of the Afghan political process and they have some political concerns. They have to be allowed to play a legitimate role in the future political settlement,” he further elaborated his government’s policy on the Afghan peace process being discussed at different forums.
“If possible, China can exert pressure on the Taliban to join the peace process,” said the ambassador who had served in Kabul and New Delhi before taking over his new assignment in Pakistan. He urged all external stakeholders, including Afghanistan’s neighbours, to play their role for peace in the war-ravaged country.
He said that Beijing supported Pakistan’s fresh initiatives for facilitating efforts for political settlement of the Afghan conflict and confidence-building measures in relations with Kabul.