Kabul: The Afghan Taliban has called for a new Constitution as a pre-condition for joining the country`s peace process, according to a declaration issued by representatives of the terror outfit at a meeting in France.
The Taliban said in the declaration that Afghanistan`s present Constitution has no value for the outfit as it was made under the shadows of B52 bombers of the invaders, reports The Express Tribune. The terror outfit said the Islamic Emirate needs a constitution that is based on the principles of Islam, national interest, historical achievements, and social justice.
Senior Taliban representatives, Shahabuddin Dilawar and Naeem Wardak, met government officials on Thursday for two days of talks which diplomats hope will bolster relations in the war-torn country.
It is the first time since a US-led bombing campaign drove the Taliban from power in 2001 that senior representatives met with officials from the government and other opposition groups to discuss the country`s future.
The meeting was organised by the Foundation for Strategic Research (FRS), and was held at an undisclosed location near Paris. The talks come against a background of accelerating efforts to draw the Taliban and other opponents of President Hamid Karzai into negotiations on how Afghanistan will be run after Western troops withdraw at the end of 2014.
To date the Taliban has refused to negotiate with the government, which it regards as a puppet of the United States. Discussions with American officials were suspended in March.
The Taliban, who ruled in Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, were ousted from power by a US-led invasion and have since waged an 11-year insurgency to topple the US-supported government of Hamid Karzai.
ANI
