After weeks of mystery surrounding Taliban senior leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Afghan officials on Wednesday said Pakistan had agreed to allow representatives of the government-backed High Peace Council to meet him in Pakistan.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif agreed to a demand by Afghan President Hamid Karzai for direct access to the Taliban leader at the trilateral summit held in London, a statement issued by the presidential palace stated, reported a private TV channel.
British Prime Minister David Cameron hosted the summit, second in nine months. The participants agreed on joint peace efforts in war-shattered Afghanistan and economic development of the volatile region.
“The three leaders agreed that a delegation of the High Peace Council will soon visit Pakistan and will meet Mullah Baradar,” the statement said.
Karzai formed the peace council in 2010 to seek a negotiated end to the insurgency the Taliban have waged since being forced from power in 2001 by a US-led invasion.