Pak army chief to visit Afghanistan to push for peace talks

Pakistan's powerful army chief General Raheel Sharif will visit Afghanistan on Sunday to discuss peace and security and possible resumption of peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, the military said today.
The visit will take place amid reports of hectic efforts to restart talks with the militants who have been involved in bloody battles with Afghan security forces.
Pakistani military spokesman Lt Gen Asim Saleem Bajwa said in a tweet that Gen Sharif will visit Kabul on December 27.
"During his day-long visit, he will hold meetings with political and military leadership of Afghanistan," Bajwa said.
The visit was discussed during Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's visit here this month when he was in Pakistan to take part in the Heart of Asia conference.

Ghani had met Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and they talked about how to resume peace talks which were suspended in July when news of Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Omar's death surfaced.
The first open round of talks was held in early July in Pakistan which wields influence over the Taliban and can play a role in arranging peace talks with them.