Trump should have consulted us before calling off talks with Taliban: Imran

Just ahead of his meeting with US president Donald Trump on Monday (September 23), Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan blamed him for cancelling the peace deal with the Taliban without consulting Pakistan.

In an interaction with Richard N Hass, president of Council on Foreign Relations, in New York, Khan said he would urge the US president to resume talks with the Taliban and facilitate the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan.

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“The peace deal was just about to be signed- this is painful for us – the peace deal was about to be signed and you know president Trump …he should have discussed it with us,” NDTV quoted Khan as saying.

Khan stressed that the country, which had played a significant role in arranging parleys between the US and the Taliban should have been consulted before the US decided to call off the peace deal.

After nine rounds of talks between US and Afghan negotiators in Qatar, Trump earlier this month cancelled all negotiations with the Taliban, citing attacks insurgent attacks against Afghans and American service members.

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“They are dead. They are dead. As far as I’m concerned, they are dead,” Trump had said.

If fructified, the peace deal would have ended the United States’ longest war.

“Look, there is not going to be a military solution. For 19 years you have not been able to succeed, you’re not going to be able to succeed in another 19 years,” Khan said.

Rejecting allegations that Pakistan supports Taliban insurgents, Khan said that Pakistan hosts 2.7 million Afghan refugees.