Uzbekistan ready to host peace talks between Taliban, Afghan government

Kabul [Afghanistan], Mar 31 (ANI): Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday met Uzbekistan's Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov at the Presidential Palace here and offered to host the talk between Taliban and Afghan government.   
The two leaders also discussed various issues of bilateral interest including the peace process, infrastructure development, and economic ties between the two nations.
During the talks, Kamilov, who is leading a delegation, expressed Uzbekistan's support to Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process, a move backed by the Afghan government in an effort to end the nearly two-decade-long civil war in the south Asian country.
“Uzbekistan is ready to host the talks if Taliban is ready to directly talk with the Afghan government,” Kamilov was quoted by TOLOnews as saying.
Underlining that ties between the two countries are cordial, Kamilov told Ghani that the implementation of joint infrastructural projects between Kabul and Tashkent will bolster bilateral cooperation.
Recalling his visit to Samarkand in December 2017 in which a number of agreements including economic, security and health were signed, Ghani said that the main focus was to give joint cooperation a boost which will create stability and peace in the region, according to the news report.
Meanwhile, the Uzbek delegation met Afghanistan's National Security Advisor Hamdullah Mohib and deliberated on bilateral ties, security, the peace process, and anti-terrorism efforts, according to the National Security Council.
During the meeting, Kamilov reiterated that Uzbekistan backs an Afghan-led peace process and his country is ready to host talks on Afghanistan. (ANI)