NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday expressed hope that the release of US and Australian nationals held by the Taliban would lead to resumption of peace talks.
Addressing reporters ahead of the meeting of NATO foreign ministers, Stoltenberg commended President Ashraf Ghani for his bold decision that made this possible. The hostages were released in exchange for three senior Taliban commanders including Anas Haqqani.
“These are confidence-building measures, hopefully they can move us closer to resumption of the peace talks and therefore also lay the ground for a politically negotiated solution to the conflict and crisis in Afghanistan,” Stoltenberg said.
Reaffirming commitment to Afghanistan, Stoltenberg said that NATO will continue to train, assist and advise the Afghan security forces.
He also commended the Afghan people for exercising their democratic right to participate in the elections.
“It is important that now different electoral bodies can finalize the counting and present the results,” Stoltenberg said.
