Trump wants Pakistan to help U.S. extricate itself from Afghanistan

Mon, Jul 22, 2019
By publisher
2 MIN READ

Foreign

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday after holding a meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan that he wants Pakistan to help the U.S. extricate itself from its role in Afghanistan.

“We’re working with Pakistan and others to extricate ourselves, nor do we want to be policemen,” Trump said while speaking in the Oval Office.

Khan’s visit comes at a time when the U.S. is working on rebuilding relations with Pakistan after Trump cut off aid to Islamabad for failing to make concrete steps to crack down on terrorist groups seeking safe haven in the country.

Khan said the situation in Afghanistan is the closest to being resolved then ever before and a peace deal may be reached.

Khan expressed hope that in the coming days Pakistan will be able to urge the Taliban movement to talk to the Afghan government to agree to a settlement that is a political solution.

Afghanistan is experiencing an unstable political, social and security situation due to the activity of the Taliban movement and the Islamic State terror group (banned in Russia) against the government forces as well as U.S. – and other Western-associated troops.

Pakistan shares a border with Kandahar, one of Afghanistan’s most turbulent provinces in which the Taliban operates.

While the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces are conducting joint offensive operations to combat terrorism across the country, Kabul has been trying to launch reconciliation talks – a prospect the Taliban has so far rejected.

-NAN

BE

JULY 22, 2019 19:20 GMT

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