Pessimism looms over outcome as Pakistan clears talks with local Taliban

This week, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired an on-camera meeting in Islamabad attended by over 100 lawmakers and officials to deliberate on talks with the Pakistani Taliban. The Parliamentary Committee on National Security subsequently gave its formal approval to hold the talks and also set up a parliamentary committee to oversee the process and ensure it was carried out within the ambit of the constitution.

Pakistan media has widely reported that at the heart of talks is an offer to accommodate the TTP with a safe passage back to Pakistan from Afghanistan in exchange for the group agreeing to a long-term ceasefire, dissolving its organization and possibly even joining mainstream politics.

However, the Pakistani government holding negotiations with local Taliban militants has been described by experts this week as “the only solution” for it to end militancy in the country, but many were skeptical about whether the process would lead to a positive outcome after previous failures.