There is to be a trilateral meeting by videolink on Thursday (today) among the Foreign Ministers of Pakistan, China and Afghanistan so that measures can be concerted to restart the stalled peace process between the Afghan government and the Taliban, with a major factor looming ahead. That is the coming US and NATO withdrawal from that war-torn country, which makes it all the more urgent that the talks which the withdrawal was supposed to facilitate. The meeting reflects two things. First, that there has not been a decrease in the level of violence after the US-Taliban agreement which allowed intra-Afghan talks to take place. Second, there is a regional reliance on Pakistan; some might even say an over-reliance on Pakistan having influence over the Taliban.
It is noteworthy that this meeting does not include the USA or even Russia. The USA is not a world power, but is the power trying to withdraw its forces. Russia is not just a world power, but is also in the region, and considers Afghanistan as being in its backyard. It is a positive sign that Pakistan is concerting measures with regional powers on how to tackle the aftermath of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. It is to be hoped that Pakistan is ready to deal with a neighbour and the region in which both are, by dealing with them directly.
It is perhaps not much of a leap to assume that all three participants of the meeting realize that China’s Belt and Road Initiative, and its New Silk Road, needs Afghanistan not just to participate, but to be at peace with itself, if they are succeed.
Pakistan must remember the mess that resulted from the Soviet Withdrawal from Afghanistan, which was because there was no post-withdrawal political settlement. That was 1988. If there is no such settlement this time, Pakistan could be left holding the baby again. It must not forget that the failure to find a settlement then means that there is still no settlement 32 years on. Pakistan must not bother about whether or not India is involved in the matter or not, but that there must be a settlement, that intra-Afghan talks take place.
