Pakistan invites Taliban for ministerial meet of Afghanistan's neighbours

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that the Taliban would be invited to the third ministerial meeting of Afghanistan's neighbours. The meeting is expected to be held in China next year, local media reported.

"Afghanistan's interim government will also be invited to the next meeting of Afghanistan's neighbours," Qureshi said at a meeting of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, reported Dawn.

According to Dawn, Pakistan had worked out a new mechanism for consultations among Afghanistan's neighbours after the Taliban takeover.

The format includes China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, besides Russia. The inaugural meeting was held in Islamabad on September 8, while the second meeting was hosted by Iran on October 27, according to the newspaper.

However, the Taliban was not invited to either of the meetings because the new regime lacked international recognition.

The next meeting will take place in China. Although dates have not been finalised, it is likely to be held early next year, Dawn reported.

Last week, Pakistan has hosted senior diplomats from the United States, China and Russia in Islamabad to discuss the situation in neighbouring Afghanistan, where a deepening humanitarian crisis has forced many Afghans to migrate to neighbouring countries since the Taliban takeover in August.

( With inputs from ANI )