Pakistan’s Ambassador to Afghanistan Mansoor Ahmad Khan said that the upcoming UN-led conference on Afghanistan in Turkey is aimed at seeking a permanent settlement to the conflict in Afghanistan.   

Khan stated that the meeting in Turkey will have a Bonn format in which various Afghan parties, including the Afghan government, Taliban and political parties, will discuss the future political roadmap for Afghanistan.  

The Pakistani envoy said that Islamabad will assist the Afghan leaders in reaching an agreement on all aspects of a political settlement, including an interim setup.  

The Pakistani envoy made the remarks during a special ceremony marking Pakistan Day at the Pakistan embassy in Kabul.  

“Peace process is now underway for last one-and-half to two years – there was a US-Taliban agreement signed between US and Taliban and which led to the intra-Afghan negotiations last year in Doha, and now to take this process forward towards a final the settlement, towards political settlement and for bringing an end to violence in Afghanistan, I think an international conference has been proposed on the pattern of Bonn conference and it will be held under the auspices of the United Nations and the effort will be to bring all the stakeholders from the Afghan government, from other Afghan political parties, Afghan leaders and from Afghan Taliban together to address the issues relating to the future political roadmap of Afghanistan” said Pakistani Ambassador Mansoor Ahmad Khan.  

On a question about the prospect for a future government in Afghanistan, the Pakistani envoy said: “I would like to maintain our position that whether it is an interim government or provisional settlement or the future roadmap—political roadmap of Afghanistan, it must be agreed among Afghan stakeholders, so it is important that we should continue to support the process, help Afghan leaders reach an agreement on all political dimensions.”  

Meanwhile, foreign ministers from Russia and China have expressed hope that the process of the talks is led by the Afghans themselves to help find a permanent settlement to the conflict.  

“Pakistan’s role in the Afghan peace process is very important. As it is important in war, Pakistan will also try to deal with the Afghan peace process with a double standard approach and exploit the Afghan the peace process for its own interest. Now it's up to the Afghans and how they use the opportunity for their national interests,” said Faiz Zaland, a political analyst in Kabul.  

This comes as violence continues to impact various regions across Afghanistan.  

On Tuesday, the Taliban claimed to have captured several check posts in Charkh district of Logar.  

Currently, battles continue between the Afghan security forces and the Taliban in at least 20 out of 34 provinces.  

In the meantime, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday at a press conference in Brussels pledged to “rebuild and revitalize” the NATO military alliance and to share American plans on any possible withdrawal from Afghanistan.  

Blinken said a review is underway by the US on Afghanistan and that he is in Brussels to share their initial findings with NATO allies. 

Blinken said conversations with allies over the next two days will cover a “broad agenda,” including NATO’s ongoing mission in Afghanistan.