During an interview with the BBC he said that this demand is part of the agreement signed in Doha between Taliban and the US and should be honored by the Afghan government.
Afghan President has already ruled out the release of Taliban prisoners in government custody creating doubts over the future of the agreement.
Qureshi expressing his views said the road to peace has never been easy, the historic agreement you saw was signed in Doha wasn’t easy as there were hick-ups there were difficulties.
“Nobody was expecting an easy run but I am sure all parties are committed to the agreement and release of prisoners from sides would be good confidence building measure,” said the foreign minister.
He said that President Ahsraf Ghani will prefer peace and I know that he has been taken into confidence in this dialogue.
Shah Mehmood Qureshi says all sides must be wary of spoilers that could derail the agreement signed a day earlier to bring peace to the country.
“I think the world should trust in Taliban because they have signed an agreement and continued reduction in violence is required to keep the momentum in the right direction,: said Qureshi.
He said: I would urge all parties to be cool and remain composed and keep their eyes on the objective of peace and stability.
He went on to say that Pakistan has facilitated the process and now it is upto the Afghans, they have to sit and decide what kind of a country they want, what kind of a future they want. “This can only be done with a political and far sighted approach,” he pointed out.
The foreign minister added Pakistan has no safe heavens, Pakistan has shown sincerity in this dialogue and this would have not happened without Pakistan’s support.
“We don’t want Afghan soil to be used against us and also we will not let our soil to be used against anyone and we will not permit any terrorist activities on our soil,” he said.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Pakistan desires peace and stability in Afghanistan. He said Pakistan played its role which was also appreciated by the world community.
He added Taliban cannot run away from new realities in the world, there are international expectations and I am sure they are smart enough to understand the changed environment.
“Pakistan has done a lot for Afghanistan and is currently hosting millions of Afghan refugees,” he said.
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