Russia has launched a diplomatic initiative to arrange a meeting of Pakistan, the US, China and Iran in order to develop a "collective mechanism" for the Afghan peace efforts. Moscow hosted a similar meeting in 2018 where Afghan Taliban were for the first time given an international stage. With these divergences, Moscow’s meeting will be seen with a lot of skepticism both by the Afghan government and the US. But Pakistan feels that Russia is an important player and hence has a role in the Afghan peace process. Key regional countries, including Pakistan, China, Russia and Iran, have broader consensus on the Afghan peace process.

Source: The Express Tribune February 22, 2021 04:07 UTC