US president seeks Pakistan help in Afghan peace talks

By Islamuddin Sajid</p> <p>ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AA) – U.S. President Donald Trump has sent a letter to Pakistan’s premier seeking his help in the peace process in Afghanistan, local media reported on Monday.</p> <p>&quot;Today I have received a letter from President Trump in which he asked for assistance in the Afghan peace talks to end the 17-year-long conflict in Afghanistan,&quot; Imran Khan told reporters, according to local broadcaster Geo News.</p> <p>Trump also wants Pakistan’s help bringing the Afghan Taliban leadership to the negotiation table, he added.</p> <p>This is first exchange between the two since a Twitter spat last month, when Trump accused Pakistan of taking “from the United States without giving anything in return,” prompting Khan to stress Pakistan’s “lives lost &amp; destabilised &amp; economic costs” due to the war on terror.</p> <p>Relations between the two have nosedived since Trump took office last year, mainly due to a clash of interests in war-torn Afghanistan.</p> <p>Washington accuses Islamabad of providing safe haven to the powerful Haqqani network, which is blamed for numerous attacks on foreign forces in Afghanistan in recent years. Pakistan denies the allegations.</p> <p>