World

Karzai Says Pakistan Crucial in Arranging Peace Talks With Taliban

Afghan president set to leave office next year

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Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Monday stressed the need for Pakistan's help in arranging peace talks with the Taliban in a meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who assured him of his support.

Pakistan backed the Taliban's rise to power in Afghanistan in the mid-1990s and is seen as a crucial gatekeeper in attempts by the U.S. and Afghan governments to reach out to insurgent leaders who fled to Pakistan after the group's 2001 ouster.