Posted on 02/04/2013 6:00:13 AM PST by haffast
Afghan President Hamid Karzai and his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari held peace talks with British Prime Minister David Cameron on Monday which for the first time featured top spy chiefs.
The summit at Cameron’s Chequers country retreat near London is aimed at boosting cooperation between Afghanistan and Pakistan, amid growing fears that a civil war could erupt when international troops leave Afghanistan in 2014.
“This trilateral process sends a very clear message to the Taliban -- now is the time for everyone to participate in a peaceful political process in Afghanistan,” a British government spokeswoman said.
snip
The president also suggested Western troops had been “fighting in the wrong place” in Afghanistan, saying security in the southern Helmand province was better before British troops arrived there.
snip
A statement released by his office said the talks in Britain would be “focused on ways to accelerate the peace process in Afghanistan and further strengthen cooperations between Afghanistan and Pakistan in the fight against terrorism and extremism”.
snip
Britain still has around 9,000 troops in Afghanistan ahead of a scheduled withdrawal in 2014. Afghan soldiers and police are taking on responsibility for battling Taliban militants from the 100,000 NATO troops due to depart by the end of next year.
snip
(Excerpt) Read more at english.alarabiya.net ...
OK, we've announced the date of our ceasefire and withdrawal, what are the rest of the terms of our surrender?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.