World Bulletin / News Desk
The first round of peace talks between representatives of the Pakistani government and the Taliban began on Thursday at an undisclosed location in Islamabad, the capital, a government source told Reuters.
After years of conflict, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif believes the the movement is now ready to find a negotiated settlement and stop fighting.
"The progress of the talks will be submitted to the prime minister," the government official, who declined to be named, as he is not authorised to comment on progress of the talks, told Reuters.
"The progress of the talks will be submitted to the prime minister," the official said. "They are meeting at an undisclosed location," he said.
On Tuesday, the first attempt at talking to the Taliban got off to a shambolic start after government negotiators failed to turn up at an agreed time, angering representatives of the Taliban.
Dawn newspaper cited sources as saying that Thursday's meeting was being held in a cordial atmosphere. Negotiators on both sides could not immediately be reached for comment.
Several earlier attempts at engaging Taliban fighters in dialogue have failed, only allowing the movement to regroup, recruit new fighters and strike back.
Last Mod: 07 Şubat 2014, 10:21
