Turkey to host Afghan peace talks later this month

The UN, Turkey and Qatar announced that a high-level conference between Afghanistan’s warring sides will take place in Istanbul later this month, according to The Associated Press,

The meeting is aimed at accelerating peace negotiations and achieving a political settlement to decades of conflict.

Their joint statement said the conference will take place between April 24 and May 4, according to The Associated Press.

The three co-conveners said they are “committed to supporting a sovereign, independent and unified Afghanistan.”

The surprise announcement came a day after a Taliban spokesman said the insurgent group would not attend a peace conference that had been tentatively planned to take place in Turkey later this week, putting US efforts for a peace plan in jeopardy.

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric, responding to questions about the Taliban announcement, said: “My understanding is that there are still internal deliberations going on within the Taliban.”

“An invitation was extended to them,” he said. “We very much hope to see them participate.”