Taliban, Kazakhstan ambassadors meet in Pakistan

November 22, 2000
Web posted at: 7:36 AM HKT (2336 GMT)

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (Reuters) -- The Afghan Taliban's and Kazakhstan's ambassadors to Pakistan met for the first time on Tuesday to discuss terrorism, drug trade and a broad-based government in Afghanistan, a private Afghan news service said.

Afghan Islamic Press (AIP) reported that during the three- hour meeting Afghan ambassador Moulvi Abdul Salam Zaeef assured Kazakh ambassador Bekzhasarn Narbayev that the ruling Taliban movement had no terrorist training camps on their territory.

The largely secular former Soviet Central Asian States, of which Kazakhstan is the biggest and economically most developed, accuse the Taliban of funding and harboring Islamic militant groups which threaten regional stability.

The Taliban deny the charge.

AIP said the Afghan ambassador also informed the Kazakh envoy about the steps the Taliban was taking to curb poppy production in the country and talked about the issue of a broad-based government in war-ravaged Afghanistan.

AIP said the two ambassadors agreed to meet again.

The Taliban have recently initiated contacts with envoys of several countries based in Islamabad including the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan and the British High Commissioner.

The Taliban's deputy commerce minister, Faiz Mohammad Faizan, said this week that the movement was in talks with Uzbekistan's diplomats in Islamabad for re-opening of their border at Hairaton port town on the river Oxus for trade and business.

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