Observer Report
Kabul
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has fired foreign ministry spokesman Sibghatullah Ahmadi for his welcome remarks over Pakistan’s talks with the Taliban, Afghan media reported on Sunday.
A 12-member Taliban delegation led by its deputy leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar met with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and other officials in Islamabad this week, with both sides agreeing on the need to resume the Afghan peace process. President Ghani’s spokesman Sediq Sediqi criticised the development and said that the meeting couldn’t help the peace process.
“Hosting a group which continues to commit violence goes against all the principles of relations between countries,” Sediqi was quoted as saying.
Ahmadi, however, welcomed the meeting. “We all witness the increasing regional and global efforts for resumption of Afghanistan’s peace process,” Ahmadi said on Twitter. “We welcome the efforts of all the countries in the region and the world aimed at peace in Afghanistan and particularly appreciate these countries’ efforts in terms of facilitating direct talks between the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Taliban. Discussions continue on the mechanism of initiating the peace talks.”
