By Hamza Ameer

Islamabad, May 10 (IANS): Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff (COAS) landed in Kabul on Monday to meet Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani amid uncertainty in the region, heightened tensions due to terror attacks in Afghanistan, withdrawal of US troops and the latest announcement of ceasefire by the Taliban during Eid.

The visit holds importance since Islamabad holds a key position in the Afghan peace process. On the other hand, the Ashraf Ghani government has accused Islamabad of harbouring the Taliban and has used them to destabilise Afghanistan.

In a recent article written by Afghan president Ashraf Ghani titled "Afghanistan's Movement of Risk and Opportunity," he has maintained that the US decision to withdraw from Afghanistan has come as a surprise to the Taliban and their patrons in Pakistan, forcing them to make choices.

"Will they become credible stakeholders, or will they foster more chaos and violence? If the Taliban choose the latter path, the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF) will fight them. And if the Taliban still refuse to negotiate, they will be choosing the peace of the grave," he wrote.

Ghani also maintained that the intra-Afghan dialogues with the Taliban would confront difficult issues, especially pertaining to their relationship with Pakistan.

"The negotiations would confront difficult issues, such as whether and how the Taliban would end their relationship with Pakistan, which provides them with support for logistics, finances, and recruitment," he wrote.

"The talks must also address the Taliban's ongoing connections to Al Qaeda, which the UN detailed in a 2020 report. Thus it is crucial that the Afghan government and the Taliban also agree on an approach against the Islamic State (or ISIS), Al Qaeda, and other terrorist groups and that our agreement includes a framework for counterterrorism that secures guarantees of support from other countries in the region and from international organisations", he added.

Ghani warned that Pakistan may miscalculate in a way that threatens peace.

"It's not too late for Pakistan to emerge as a partner and stakeholder in an orderly peace process. Pakistan might also miscalculate in a way that threatens peace," he highlighted.

The Pakistan Army Chief's visit becomes even more crucial as before landing in Afghanistan, the COAS was in Saudi Arabia to discuss the Afghan peace process, and then met Britain's Chief of Defence Staff General Nicholas Patrick Carter for talks on the Afghan peace process.

It is pertinent to mention that Pakistan has been in contact and negotiations with the Taliban and has been insisting on them to announce ceasefire, agree to an extension in the US-Taliban agreement and also to continue being part of the peace talks in Turkey.

It seems that the efforts have yielded fruit as the Taliban announced that they would commit a three-day ceasefire for Eid.