Pakistan has stake in Afghan peace process: US

WASHINGTON: The US has said Pakistan has a stake in the Afghan peace process stating that it has encouraged Islamabad in facilitating peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban.

"We have long encouraged Pakistan to support (Afghan) President (Ashraf) Ghani's reconciliation efforts. We remain in support and in contact with President Ghani on these matters as well as certain countries like Pakistan who have a stake in the outcome," the State Department Spokesperson Jen Psaki told reporters yesterday.

Responding to questions, Psaki said the US has seen comments about talks between Taliban and the Afghan government, but does not have any confirmation of it.

"We certainly remain supportive of an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned reconciliation process whereby the Taliban and the Afghans engaged in talks towards a settlement to resolve the conflict in Afghanistan. We don't have confirmation of the talks," she added.