"Yes I can confirm Taliban's Doha office has been revived and now with the facilitation of Pakistan, Afghan Taliban are holding initial talks with senior Afghan government officials to chalk out the strategy and set rules for formal talks," the official told a private TV channel on condition of anonymity. Another official said Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) General Raheel Sharif had given the green signal for facilitating the resumption of dialogue when he met Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul earlier this week.
The official also confirmed that the Afghan Taliban have held two rounds of talks with senior officials in Beijing, and Pakistan was taken on board by Chinese officials about the conclusion of the talks held in the Chinese capital. Details reveal that in the initial level talks, the Afghan Taliban are being represented by Qari Din Mohammad from the Taliban political office in Doha who also went to China in late November, 2014 to discuss the situation in Afghanistan. Qari Din Muhammad also held a meeting with senior US diplomats in Doha this week.
When asked for comments, Foreign Office spokesperson Tasneem Aslam said Pakistan has vital stakes in peace and stability in Afghanistan and is ready to provide whatever assistance it can. "We are ready to facilitate the reconciliation process to the possible extent," she confirmed. Pakistan military's public affairs wing had issued a rare statement on Thursday in response to the reports surfacing in the international media that General Raheel Sharif, during his visit to Kabul, had indicated to the Afghan leadership that Taliban might be willing to open reconciliation process.
"While onus for such negotiations to succeed lies on both parties concerned, Pakistan in all sincerity will support the process, as peace in Afghanistan will contribute to peace in the region. We hope all stakeholders will continue to act with responsibility not to allow detractors of peace to succeed," a military spokesman had said.