PM asks Afghan parties to build on progress made in talks.

ISLAMABAD -- Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday called upon the Afghan warring factions to build on the progress made in their peace talks so far.

He was talking to a delegation of Taliban Political Commission (TPC), headed by Taliban deputy chief Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, which called on him for discussing the peace process and the way forward.

'The prime minister expressed hope that the Afghan parties would continue to build on the recent positive developments in the intra-Afghan negotiations,' the Prime Minister Office said in a statement after the meeting.

The intra-Afghan dialogue is currently on a 20-day recess with both sides off to update their principals and seek fresh instructions. They were negotiating the agenda of the talks before breaking off for the recess.

The two sides had earlier agreed on 'rules and procedures' for the talks after protracted discussions spanning over nearly three months.

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The Afghan government and Taliban have an understanding on resuming the talks from Jan 5, but a new venue for the dialogue is yet to be decided. Both sides have diverging views about where to reconvene.

There has been an element of uncertainty about the future of the talks because of high incidence of violence in Afghanistan, indecision about the future venue of the talks and the upcoming transition in Washington.

However, the message from Islamabad to both sides has been clear that it wants reduction in violence, leading to a ceasefire, and the talks to continue till an inclusive and comprehensive political settlement is achieved.

Prime Minister Khan, while talking to the Taliban delegation, underscored that the peace talks provided a historic opportunity to the Afghan leaders for achieving durable peace and stability. He expressed concern over the high level of violence and called on all sides for reduction in violence leading to a ceasefire.

Mr Khan reiterated Pakistan's support for an inclusive, broad-based and comprehensive political settlement. He further warned about the role of spoilers, who continue to try to disrupt and derail the peace process.

The delegation from Taliban's political office in Doha, according to the PM Office, is visiting Pakistan as part of Islamabad's efforts to facilitate the process to achieve a peaceful...