ISLAMABAD — Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Thursday sought to secure help from Pakistani leaders in facilitating peace talks with Pakistan-based Afghan Taliban leaders, while the militant group denied any interest in negotiating with an “impotent” administration.
Karzai’s visit to Islamabad, the Pakistan capital, came amid reports that he had said in an interview that the U.S. and Afghan governments had begun secret talks with the Afghan Taliban insurgency. In recent months, U.S. officials have been meeting with Taliban envoys to discuss the establishment of a Taliban office in the gulf state of Qatar.
But late Thursday, the Taliban issued a statement strongly denying the movement had taken part in secret talks with the Karzai government.
“We have not decided to negotiate with the Karzai regime,” said spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid. He called the Karzai administration “impotent” and accused the Afghan leader of wanting “to extend his foreign-backed power for a few more days.”
“This false campaign will fail,” he said.
Previously, the Taliban leadership has dismissed Karzai as a “puppet” and publicly indicated willingness to hold contacts only with the Americans and the West.
However, a member of the Karzai-appointed body set up in 2010 to try to begin negotiations with the Taliban, Haji Musa Hotak, said the Taliban position had changed.
“The Taliban have stopped insisting on talking to the U.S. and not the Afghan government,” he said. “Now the Taliban are saying they are ready to talk with the Afghan government face to face. They said they will talk to both Americans and the Afghan government.”
Karzai held separate meetings with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and President Asif Ali Zardari. He also met with Zardari and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who also arrived in Islamabad on Thursday.
Ahmadinejad’s meetings with Pakistani leaders were expected to center on plans for a pipeline that would send Iranian natural gas to Pakistan.
Although Washington opposes the idea because of concerns over Iran’s nuclear program, Pakistan has signaled its intent to move ahead with the proposed pipeline.
