BEIJING, Dec 4 (TNS):Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met here with former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and discussed the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry’s statement issued here on Wednesday.
During the meeting, the Chinese foreign minister said Afghan situation has come to a crucial point, and the top priority now is to achieve progress and results in both US-Taliban talks and intra-Afghan dialogue.
China has always respected the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan, Wang said.
On the premise of respecting the willingness of Afghan people, China will continue to play a constructive role in promoting the country’s peaceful reconciliation based on the needs of all parties in Afghanistan, he added.
Karzai, currently in China to attend the 2019 Imperial Springs International Forum held in Guangzhou, said Afghanistan appreciates China’s effort on promoting the intra-Afghan dialogue and is willing to enhance coordination with China to push the start of the dialogue as soon as possible.
The Afghan people cherish their traditional friendship with China and look forward to the continuous strengthening of ties between Afghanistan and China, he added.
He appreciated China for providing a lot of selfless assistance to Afghanistan’s peaceful reconstruction and development, and playing an important role in maintaining regional peace, stability, and prosperity.
Karzai said for a long time, China has maintained close communication with the Afghan side and actively promoted the Afghan peace and reconciliation process, which was welcomed by all parties.
The Afghan side sincerely thanks China for its efforts to facilitate the internal dialogue between the Afghan people and is willing to strengthen coordination with China and promote the dialogue to start as soon as possible, he added.
