UN chief urges speedy Afghan government and Taliban talks
ASSOCIATED PRESS
An Afghan security personnel stand guard in the checkpoint of airport after a suicide attack in Jalalabad province, east of Kabul, Afghanistan, on Wednesday. Militants in Afghanistan set off a suicide blast on Wednesday morning and stormed a construction company near the airport in Jalalabad, the capital of eastern Nangarhar province, officials said.
UNITED NATIONS >> U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is calling for immediate talks between Afghanistan’s government and the Taliban, saying the current moment represents “perhaps the most significant chance” to find a negotiated resolution of the country’s 17-year war.
The U.N. chief stressed in a report to the Security Council circulated today that “a sustainable peace agreement can be reached only through comprehensive intra-Afghan dialogue.”
Guterres expressed hope that progress in U.S. talks with the Taliban will bring about direct talks between the insurgents and the government.
U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad is currently holding talks with the Taliban in Qatar. The talks are now in their second week, raising expectations there could be some progress.
Despite those talks, Guterres says the security situation in Afghanistan remains “volatile,” with record-high civilian deaths.
