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             Roadmap to Talks With Afghan Taliban Expected Saturday

   by Ayesha Tanzeem

   Representatives of the United States, China, Afghanistan and Pakistan
   are expected to agree to a plan to facilitate peace talks between the
   Afghan government and the Taliban in a meeting in Islamabad Saturday.

   The delegates are trying to prepare a "road map" for a sustainable and
   productive peace process, and studying what to do about Taliban
   factions that oppose the talks and refuse to end hostilities.

   The Quadrilateral Coordination Group has met twice before in Islamabad
   and Kabul, but no significant developments were reported in those
   meetings.

   "I'm hopeful that in today's deliberations, we'll be able to finalize
   and adopt the roadmap," Sartaj Aziz, adviser to Pakistan's prime
   minister on foreign affairs, said in his opening statement.

   The four countries are trying to find a way to convince the Afghan
   Taliban to come to the table.

   Taliban officials have called these talks "useless" and have not
   indicated that they are willing to cease hostilities against the Afghan
   government.

   They have demanded the release of their imprisoned members, removal of
   U.N. travel and financial restrictions on senior insurgent leaders, and
   withdrawal of all foreign troops from Afghanistan.

   Aziz said that the QCG has made "serious progress" during its first two
   meetings.

   Addressing a key Afghan concern about an increase in Taliban attacks
   that Afghanistan has often blamed on insurgent leaders operating out of
   Pakistan, Aziz expressed confidence that "the process would lead to a
   significant reduction in violence."

   He emphasized, however, the need to keep the dialogue process on track
   and "avoiding a situation like that witnessed in July last year."

   Taliban representatives sat down with the representatives of the Afghan
   government in July to discuss ways to end hostilities. That effort
   collapsed when news broke that Taliban leader Mullah Omar, who was
   supposed to have blessed the talks, had been dead for several years.

   Afghanistan blamed Pakistan for not being forthright. Pakistani
   officials, in background briefings, blamed elements within Afghanistan
   for deliberately leaking the news at the time to scuttle the talks.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/afghan-talks/3179577.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/afghan-talks/3179577.html