U.S., Russia, China and Pakistan release joint statement on intra-Afghan talks in China

• The US held 4th round of consultations w/ Russian & Chinese counterparts in Moscow last Friday.
• TU.S., Russia, China and Pakistan released a joint statement urging all sides to immediately reduce violence.
• They also "stated their expectations that all sides will observe a ceasefire for the duration of intra-Afghan negotiations to enable participants to reach agreement on a political roadmap for Afghanistan’s future."

The United States on Monday welcomed China's hosting of a fresh meeting bringing together Afghan officials and the Taliban, after President Donald Trump abruptly ended talks with the insurgents.

The Taliban has said that China invited a delegation to talks Tuesday and Wednesday in Beijing, the second such meeting after a dialogue in Qatar in July that was co-arranged with Germany.

Zalmay Khalilzad, the US special envoy on Afghan peace, met with his colleagues from China, Russia and Pakistan last week in Moscow, where the four countries renewed support for a "comprehensive and sustainable peace agreement."

Held 4th round of consultations w/ Russian & Chinese counterparts in Moscow last Friday. Pakistanis joined us for 2nd time. We agreed on steps in support of the Afghan people’s desire to end war & bring a lasting peace. More details in joint statement:https://t.co/mlf1hbxadm

— U.S. Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad (@US4AfghanPeace) October 28, 2019

The four countries "welcomed the Chinese proposal to host the next intra-Afghan meeting in Beijing," said a joint statement released Monday by the United States.

The talks will include "a wide range of political figures" including "representatives of the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, other Afghan leaders and the Taliban," it said.

The Taliban have refused to negotiate formally with the Kabul government, but the Beijing and Doha gatherings are seen as fostering dialogue and planting the seeds of an eventual brokered solution.

Khalilzad negotiated for a year with the Taliban, reaching an agreement under which the United States would withdraw troops and end its longest war.

But Trump last month ended the talks, withdrawing an invitation he said he extended to the Taliban to meet near Washington, citing the killing of a US soldier.

The United States has frequently tried to blunt the global influence of China and Russia, but Khalilzad has frequently consulted with the two on his search for Afghan peace.

China shares a 76-kilometer (about 45-mile) border with Afghanistan and has voiced concern about a spread of Islamic extremism, while the Soviet Union in the 1980s led a disastrous intervention in the country against Islamic guerrillas then backed by Washington.