ISLAMABAD, Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that Pakistan would use its influence on Taliban for holding direct talks with Turkey to secure the Kabul International Airport as the U.S. troops are set to exit the conflict-hit country by August 31.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will be trying the best thing for Turkey and Taliban to have a face-to-face dialogue, so that both could talk about the reasons to secure the Kabul airport,\u201d he said in an interaction with journalists, here at the PM House.<\/p>\n
He was responding to a question by a reporter about the government\u2019s position after Turkey had proposed a new joint mission involving itself, Pakistan and Hungary to protect the Kabul International Airport.<\/p>\n
The prime minister mentioned his meeting with Turkish defence minister retired General Hulusi Akar on Wednesday, which also discussed the security situation in the region including Afghanistan.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will also talk to the Taliban and use our influence [for a meeting with Turkish government],\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Imran Khan said the Afghan government was getting extremely critical about Pakistan, considering that it had \u201csome magic powers\u201d to persuade the Taliban.<\/p>\n
He said in fact, persuading the Taliban had become more difficult.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow, our leverage on the Taliban is miniscule as they think that they have won against the Americans,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The pointed out that the \u2018kleptocratic\u2019 government of Afghanistan had made Pakistan a scapegoat for all its misgovernance done in past years.<\/p>\n
He said the Afghan government was trying everything to get the United States back and intervene in the current situation.<\/p>\n
Asked about Pakistan\u2019s stance on Taliban demanding Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to step down, he stressed the need for a \u201cceasefire at all costs\u201d, adding that the \u201cDoha talks would decide the middle ground for a compromise\u201d between the stakeholders.<\/p>\n
Pakistan, he said, would deal with any government in Afghanistan, \u201celected or selected\u201d, by its people.<\/p>\n
\u201cAn inclusive government would be the best. But if the Taliban do a forceful military takeover, the result will be a civil war and a nightmare for Pakistan,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
The prime minister said Pakistan was \u201cworried\u201d about the law and order situation in Afghanistan because any civil war could result in a direct impact on it in the shape of an influx of refugees.<\/p>\n
To a question on China\u2019s future role in Afghanistan, he said China being an emerging power and a neighbour would have its part in the rebuilding of the war-torn country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD, Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that Pakistan would use its influence on Taliban for holding direct talks with Turkey to secure the Kabul International Airport as the U.S. troops are set to exit the conflict-hit country by August 31. \u201cWe will be trying […]<\/p>\n
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