Pakistan has decided to hold peace talks with militant groups. At the All Parties Conference on Thursday, the politicians, government and the military officials discussed matters in light of the recent US threats. A 13-point declaration was issued after a nine-hour meeting. It was decided that the country would hold peace talks with militants including the banned group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The carefully drafted declaration affirmed, “Pakistan must initiate dialogue with a view to negotiate peace with our own people in the tribal areas.” The members furthermore agreed to implement a new strategy, with a focus on reconciliation, and pledged to give “peace a chance”.

A parliamentary committee will be formed to oversee the implementation of the declaration. Surprisingly, the statement did not mention the US by name at any point

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Amidst pressure from the US to act against the Haqqani group, Pakistan’s ISI chief General Shuja Pasha visited Washington DC to discuss the matter with his CIA counterpart General David Petraeus. The meeting, a low key affair was held at the CIA headquarters in Langley. Another set of talks took place at Ambassador Husain Haqqani’s Washington residence. General Pasha met with Petraeus, senior CIA officials and White House officials in the meetings to discuss the militant group.

This is the third high level meeting this week between senior officials of the two countries to discuss Haqanni. Previously US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar met in New York. The US Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen has also earlier met with General Kayani in Seville to discuss the matter.

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The Obama administration on Tuesday declared a key militant leader in southeastern Afghanistan a terrorist, barring US nationals from making business deals with him and freezing any of his assets in America. According to the State Department, Mullah Sangeen Zadran is a commander of the Haqqani network and the shadow governor of the Afghan province of Paktika. The UN has also designated Zadran a terrorist, meaning he would be subject to asset freeze, arms embargo and international travel ban. The Haqqani network, which operates in the Pak-Afghan border area, has contacts with both the Taliban and Al-Qaeda and is said to be a major threat to peace in Afghanistan.

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US has reached out to Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Muhammad Omar to broker an end to the fighting in Afghanistan, said a media report on Tuesday. Abdul Haqiq a.k.a Muhammad Haneef, an ex- Taliban spokesperson, played an important role in helping America establish contact with Mullah Omar, the report added. Up to now, Washington has made several claims about talks with the Taliban but Kabul and Islamabad were not taken into confidence over the negotiations. America reportedly offered the insurgents control of the southern part of the country, leaving northern Afghanistan for other political powers under US influence. But the Taliban rejected the offer.

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