Chequers trilateral summit advanced Afghan peace process: US
06 February, 2013
WASHINGTON: The United States has endorsed a joint statement issued at the end of the third trilateral summit between leaders of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Britain held at Chequers over the weekend, saying it had advanced the Afghan peace and reconciliation process. "We fully endorse the contents of the joint statement that those three governments came forward with, and we are committed ourselves to support an Afghan-led process," State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland said at the daily press briefing on Monday. Responding to a question about the outcome of the Chequers summit, Nuland referred to last month's meeting between President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Washington, and said the two leaders reaffirmed that an Afghan-led peace and reconciliation process is the surest way to end the violence and ensure lasting stability in Afghanistan and in the region. "We believe that the UK-Afghanistan-Pakistan Chequers summit that occurred this weekend, was clearly an advance in this process," the spokesperson added. "Our goal here has been to support the creation of a process to make it possible, both in the work that we're doing with the Afghan Government, the work that we're doing with the Government of Pakistan and the three of us together through the core group, and our support for the opening of the office in Qatar under the right circumstance, to make it possible for willing Taliban participants to talk directly to the Afghan High Peace Council," Ms Nuland said. "That's what we're looking for, and we call on the Taliban to take the steps necessary to open the office in Doha and to enter into real dialogue with the High Peace Council. The goal for everybody should be an inclusive political order in a strong, unified, sovereign Afghanistan," she said. "The goal for everybody should be an inclusive political order in a strong, unified, sovereign Afghanistan." End.
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