Taliban to attend Paris talks on future of Afghanistan
The Taliban will attend a meeting in France to talk about Afghanistan's future but will not discuss peace and reconciliation, the militant group's spokesman has said.
The meeting, organised by a French think-tank on the outskirts of Paris, is not expected to produce results, but it will produce a rare face-to-face gathering of Afghanistan's major players.
Only one such meeting, far less inclusive, has been held this year with Taliban participation. It was organised by a Japanese university in Kyoto six months ago.
Zabiullah Mujahid said two of the Taliban's representatives will attend next week's meeting to outline their policies.
Representatives from Afghanistan's High Peace Council, political parties opposed to the Taliban, and the militant Islamist group Hezb-e-Islami also are expected to attend.
French foreign ministry deputy spokesman Vincent Floreani said the conference would take place this month under the auspices of the Foundation for Strategic Research.
It will be closed to the media and will involve "all components of Afghan society", he said. He declined to specify the date or indicate the location, citing security concerns.
Peace talks with the Taliban remained stalled, but there are signs of increasing efforts to get them back on track. US-backed talks broke down last March in a dispute over the release of five Taliban detainees held in US custody at Guantanamo Bay.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai wants the peace talks to be led by his government and the peace council, a body he set up to negotiate with the insurgency.
It was unclear who would represent the Afghan government, but an official who asked not to be named said that education minister Farooq Wardak may attend along with one other official.
Pakistan is also a key player in the peace process, and its release of a number of Taliban prisoners earlier in the month was seen as a key step in its participation.
The co-operation of Pakistan, which has long-standing ties to the Taliban, is seen as pivotal in restarting the talks.
The United States and its allies are trying to get movement ahead of the Afghan presidential election in 2014, the year that most foreign combat troops are set to leave the country.
