US-Taliban Talks in Pakistan Postponed

Kabul [Afghanistan], Feb 18 (ANI): Negotiations between US officials and Taliban members which were supposed to be held in Islamabad on Monday has now been postponed.In a statement, Taliban said that they were ready for talks on a peace process to end the nearly two-decades-long conflict in Afghanistan, but asserted that most of its members would be not able to attend the meeting as they are blacklisted by the US and the UN, TOLOnews reported.Officials said that Afghanistan's foreign ministry had lodged a formal complaint with the UN Security Council over the planned meeting between Taliban representatives and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, terming it a clear violation of Afghanistan's sovereignty.In its complaint, the Afghan government stated that the Taliban officials invited to Pakistan have a travel ban against them and is a clear violation of international law.Interestingly, the Taliban did not elaborate on how its representatives were able to travel to the UAE and Russia for similar meetings. The group has a political office in Qatar, where the negotiating team lives.Earlier this month, Afghanistan lodged a similar complaint with the UN over a recent visit by Taliban members to Moscow. Kabul said that Moscow allowed them to enter the country despite them being blacklisted by the world body.The Afghan government has criticised the talks from the beginning by saying that the talks hosted by Russia were against the spirit of Afghan-led and owned peace process. (ANI)

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