Dominic Raab reaches Islamabad to hold talks with Pak leadership on Afghanistan

British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab reached Islamabad on Thursday night for a two-day visit to discuss the situation in Afghanistan.

Raab is in Pakistan till September 3. He will hold talks with Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on the evolving situation in Afghanistan and bilateral matters, Geo News reported.

Foreign Secretary Raab is also scheduled to have an interaction at the leadership level, the Foreign Office said in a statement. He will meet Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chief of the Army Staff Qamar Javed Bajwa.

Raab is also on the tour to visit Afghanistan's neighbouring countries. On Thursday morning, Raab arrived in Qatar to discuss the Afghanistan situation with Qatar Foreign Minister in Doha.

The outfit is expected to announce a new government in Afghanistan. The movement's supreme leader, Haibatullah Akhundzada, is expected to have ultimate power over a new governing council, with a president below him, Taliban officials have said.

Senior Taliban leader Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai met with UK senior civil servant Simon Gass here and discussed humanitarian aid, security and political issues, as well as bilateral relations.

This was announced by Taliban spokesperson M Naeem on Twitter. Simon Gass, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Special Representative for Afghan Transition, is currently in Doha to hold talks with Taliban leaders.

In the run-up to government formation, the Taliban is holding talks with several countries around the world in a bid to gain legitimacy.

( With inputs from ANI )