US' talks with Taliban's middle ranked leaders may fail to yield desired results - India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

The United States has confirmed that it would support any initiative for talks with the Taliban in Afghanistan, however any such plan for a dialogue with the insurgents is unlikely to yield the desired results. According to sources, only middle rank Taliban leaders have agreed for the talks, and any decision made by these leaders would not have any major impact on Afghan insurgency. Sources privy to the issue said US' talks with former Taliban Ambassador to Pakistan Mullah Mutawakil and Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef might also fail to produce results. Mutawakil and Zaeef do not enjoy the Taliban's support and are looked upon with disregard by the current Taliban leadership following their surrender to the US earlier in the Afghan war. US officials have made it clear that the Obama administration has no issues in holding talks with the Afghan Taliban, and that it would support any initiatives by other countries in this regard. Obama's Special Envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke confirmed that Saudi Arabia has initiated a dialogue with the Taliban, which the US duly supports. "I have talked to the Saudis. I've been to Riyadh. I talked to King Abdullah about it myself. We would be supportive of anything that the kingdom chose to do in this regard," The Dawn quoted Holbrooke, as saying. Holbrooke, however, parried queries about whether Britain was also involved in the talks. "I can't speak about the British. You have to ask them," he said. US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton has also said that Washington is open to the Afghan government's proposal to hold talks with the outlawed outfit, but cautioned Kabul to proceed carefully.