Afghanistan: Pak officials urge world to give ‘chance’ to Taliban

Islamabad [Pakistan] August 29 (ANI): After the Taliban’s hostile takeover of Afghanistan, officials from Islamabad have been urging the world to give a ‘chance’ to the Taliban.

Pakistan has been quietly engaging with key international and regional stakeholders with a message that Afghanistan should not be left alone and the incoming government there, likely to be led by the Afghan Taliban, Express Tribune reported.

Experts in this matter told The Express Tribune that there was a considered view among the policymakers in Pakistan that the international community must not form a judgement about the Taliban.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, during his four-nation visit to Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Iran, carried a similar message.

Qureshi is likely to undertake more visits to the countries, having stakes in Afghanistan’s future, Express Tribune reported.

The developments came a few days after former senator Mustafa Kamal has lambasted the Imran Khan government for its “malafide policies” towards Afghanistan and said that the country has already paid enough price, The News International reported.

Earlier on August 15, the day when the Taliban gained control over the capital city of Kabul, anti-Pakistan protests across the globe were organised and the demonstrators raised their voices against Islamabad’s role in the Afghanistan debacle and blamed the country for helping the Taliban.

Multiple protests were held in the US, Australia, Canada, the UK, and Austria on Sunday against the Taliban’s seizure of key regions and brutal offensive in Afghanistan.

Afghan diaspora and other people living in Canada, Australia, Manchester and Vienna staged protests against the Taliban, denouncing their aggressive advance and barbaric acts in Afghanistan. Protesters also called to sanction Pakistan for their proxy war in Afghanistan.

Around 300 persons gathered at Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on Saturday protesting against Pakistan for supporting the Taliban in Afghanistan. (ANI)