The weekend meeting, brokered by Qatar and Germany, will follow a separate strand of talks between Taliban militants and U.S. diplomats this week aimed at agreeing a timeline for the withdrawal as well as security guarantees for a post-conflict Afghanistan. Two senior officials said the two sets of meetings were deeply interconnected but were being kept separate as the groundwork was laid for full peace talks later. Invited by German and Qatari mediators, the identity of those taking part has not been made public. Markus Potzel, Berlin’s special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, said in a statement they were participating “only in their personal capacity and on an equal footing”. Next year, parliament will have to approve the continued presence of 1,200 German troops in Afghanistan.

Source: Pakistan Today July 03, 2019 11:48 UTC