ISLAMABAD -- President Ashraf Ghani's new special envoy for regional affairs and peace, Mohammad Umer Daudzai, sees 2019 as a year of hope and peace in Afghanistan.
Daudzai, who is on his maiden trip to Pakistan in his new role, told the Associated Press Wednesday (January 9) that "we are naming 2019 as a year of peace for Afghanistan".
The Taliban has refused to hold direct talks with the Afghan government, but Daudzai has cautioned that peace is impossible until the group agrees to negotiate directly with Kabul.
He urged Pakistani leaders to encourage the Taliban to come to the negotiating table and "make them realise it is to their benefit".