The Council for the Protection and Stability of Afghanistan said on Monday that it will play a role in the peace process with the Taliban.

The council, formed recently by former Jihadi leaders and senior government officials, made the announcement on the heels of Afghanistan and Pakistan's decision to resume talks with the group.

According to the council's spokesman, Sayed Hamid Gillani, a meeting will be convened in Kabul to plan a national consensus on the prospect of peace.

On Monday, the council formally inaugurated its office in Kabul – from where it will conduct its political activities. The council has said it will also recommend a number of proposals to the government on the issue of peace talks.

According to council members, they will also hold talks with the Taliban soon, but an exact date and venue for the talks was not announced.

"Our peace council has mapped out a detailed plan for peace. They have also explained the reasons that undermined the peace process over the past 14 years," council spokesman Sayed Eshaq Gillani said.
The council also urged government to announce a date for the parliamentary and district council elections.

"The president has always discussed issues of national importance with various social segments including Jihadi leaders. The president is willing [to do so] on other issues as well as the peace process," deputy presidential spokesman Sayed Zafar Hashemi said.

The much-awaited peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government collapsed in July last year following the death of the group's longtime leader Mullah Omar and a string of attacks on Afghan cities. This also led to a breakdown in relations between Kabul and Islamabad.

"The council is determined to act in harmony over the upcoming elections, because past experiences show that one-sided actions do not work," Gillani said.

"The Jihadi council which is inaugurated today consists of people who brought the National Unity Government to power and are part of the same government. I think such a council does not have any public reputation anymore. If they claim Jihad, today al-Qaeda, Daesh and Taliban also chant the slogan of Jihad, these things are not interesting to people anymore," political analyst Ahmad Saeedi said.