China Urges Afghan Taliban to Cut Ties with All Terrorists

ISLAMABAD - Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reportedly pressed the leaders of Afghanistan's insurgent Taliban group Wednesday to "make a clean break" from all terrorists, including the anti-China East Turkistan Islamic Movement, or ETIM, during a meeting he hosted.  As the largest neighbor of #Afghanistan, #China always pursues a friendly policy towards the entire Afghan people. Afghanistan belongs to the Afghan people, and its future and destiny should be in the hands of the Afghan people. pic.twitter.com/QAvbfncAp5 China hopes the Afghan #Taliban will put Afghanistan's national interests first, uphold commitment to peace talks, embrace the goal of peace, create a positive image and adopt an inclusive policy. pic.twitter.com/GVQKz2kTma

Officials from both sides said Taliban deputy political chief Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, who heads the group's office in Qatar, led his nine-member delegation at the talks in the northern city of Tianjin.  The meeting, some analysts said, underscores Beijing's warming ties with the Islamist insurgent group and the Taliban's growing clout on the global stage.  "Wang pointed out that the Afghan Taliban is an important military and political force in Afghanistan and is expected to play an important role in the country's peace, reconciliation and reconstruction process," according to the Chinese foreign ministry.