Helping Afghans achieve lasting peace is a priority for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), says a top diplomat.
NATO’s Senior Civilian Representative to Afghanistan Ambassador Sir Nicholas Kay blamed the Taliban for ignoring public calls for peace.
In an interview with a Pakistani TV channel on Sunday, the diplomat said: “Our priority is to help Afghans achieve sustainable peace as soon as possible.”
While supporting an early resumption of the US-Taliban talks, NATO SCR stressed intra-Afghan negotiations involving the Taliban, the Kabul government and other stakeholders.
Speaking to Geo TV, he asked all neighboring countries to support efforts being made to reach a negotiated settlement to the conflict. He also praised the efforts of Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, the US special representative.
With regard to the presidential election, the NATO diplomat stressed the importance of counting only valid votes. He called on all parties to accept the results — when announced.
The Afghans were crying for peace but the Taliban were ignoring their will, Kay said, calling for an early end to the Taliban-linked violence in Afghanistan.
