ISI Chief in Afghanistan to meet top Taliban leaders; agenda kept secret [details]

The Pakistani intelligence agency, Inter-Services Intelligence's Chief has reached the Afghan capital, Kabul to hold talks with the Taliban, which is under the process of making the new government. Pakistan ISI chief Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed reached Kabul on Saturday at the invitation of the Taliban leadership. The Taliban, which took Kabul on August 15 after surging throughout much of the nation, have run into resistance in the Panjshir Valley, where severe combat and casualties have been reported.

The Taliban has postponed the establishment of a new government in Afghanistan until next week, citing difficulties in forming a broad-based and inclusive government that will be acceptable to the international community. The Taliban have postponed the creation of a government for the second time since toppling the US-backed Afghan government. On Friday, the organization was likely to announce the establishment of a new government led by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the party's co-founder.

As Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) director general Hameed arrived in Kabul to meet the Taliban along with a delegation of senior Pakistani officials, media posted a few questions. On being asked "What he expects in Afghanistan?" he responded, "We are working for peace and stability in Afghanistan. "Don't worry, everything will be okay."

Although there has not been any official agenda on the meeting between the two sides, several media outlets in Pakistan have reported that the meeting would include "Issues relating to Pak-Afghan security, economy, and other matters will be taken up with the Taliban leadership."

It is pertinent to note that Pakistan and ISI have been accused of supporting the Taliban in taking over Afghanistan. The US has said Pakistan and the ISI backed the Taliban in the group's two-decade fight against the government in Kabul, although Islamabad has denied the charges. Hameed's travel to Kabul coincided with Pakistani Army leader General Qamar Javed Bajwa's Saturday meeting with British foreign secretary Dominic Raab, during which he stated that Pakistan will assist in the building of an inclusive Afghan government.