US WORKING WITH TURKISH, AFGHAN PARTIES TO ACCELERATE THE PEACE PROCESS

Fri 09 April 2021:

The United States is working with Turkish and Afghan counterparts to plan the Istanbul conference to help accelerate the peace process, State Department spokesperson Ned price said on Thursday.

“Planning is underway for a conference in Istanbul to accelerate the peace process… We are working with our Turkish counterparts and the Afghan parties to prepare for constructive participation in this conference,” Price said in a press briefing.

The US-brokered conference on Afghanistan in Turkey is expected to take place later in April.

Last month, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken sent a letter to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani proposing to convene international stakeholders, including Russia, China, India, Iran and Pakistan, for a UN-facilitated conference on the Afghan peace process in Turkey.

Though the proposal was welcomed by the international community, the exact date of the meeting in the Turkish city of Istanbul has not yet been agreed upon, as the Taliban are still deliberating their participation.

Photo: US Special Representative for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad and his accompanying delegation at Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul, on 27 March 2021.