Peace in Afghanistan can be restored only through negotiated settlement: PM

UNITED NATIONS, Sept 21 (APP): Prime Minister Shahid
Khaqan Abbasi Thursday said after 16 years of war in
Afghanistan, it was clear that peace would not be restored
there by the continuing resort to military force.
“Neither Kabul and the Coalition, nor the Afghan
Taliban, can impose a military solution on each other,” the
prime minister said while addressing the annual UN General
Assembly session.
He said the international community – as expressed in
several United Nations resolutions – had concluded that peace
could be restored in Afghanistan only through a negotiated
settlement.
Prime Minister Abbasi said that Pakistan believed that
urgent and realistic goals in Afghanistan should include
concerted action to eliminate the presence in that country
of Daesh, Al-Qaeda and their affiliates, including the TTP and
Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, which was recently declared a terrorist
organization by the Security Council.
He also suggested promotion of negotiations between
Kabul and the Afghan Taliban – in the Quadrilateral
Coordination Group (QCG) or any trilateral format – to evolve
a peaceful settlement in Afghanistan.
He said the two steps offered the most realistic
prospect of restoring peace and stability in Afghanistan and
the region.
“No one desires peace in Afghanistan more than
Pakistan,” the prime minister added.