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Written question asked by Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party) on Tuesday, 12 January 2016, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 14 January 2016. It was answered by Tobias Ellwood (Conservative) on Tuesday, 19 January 2016 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Afghanistan and Pakistan: Taliban

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the (a) Afghan and (b) Pakistani government on reducing the influence of the Taliban in that country.

Answer

The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) held a trilateral meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in December 2015, where they discussed reducing the influence of the Taleban on Afghanistan. The Prime Minister also spoke to President Ghani and Prime Minister Sharif individually on the topic. Both President Ghani and Prime Minister Sharif reiterated their commitment to an Afghan owned and led peace process as the only route to a stable and secure Afghanistan.

In September, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) met with the Afghan Chief Executive Officer Dr Abdullah Abdullah and discussed the situation in Afghanistan. Since August 2015, the Foreign Secretary has spoken with a number of senior Pakistani figures including: Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar; former National Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz; and Chief Minister of Punjab Shahbaz Sharif.

I discussed the Taleban influence in Afghanistan and Pakistan with a number of senior interlocutors, including President Ghani, during my visit to Pakistan in September 2015 and my visit to Afghanistan in December 2015.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
22018
Session
2015-16
Subjects
Pakistan Afghanistan Taliban
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk