The Paksitani government has asked Richard Holbrooke, the envoy to Pakistan and Afghanistan to "talk to Taliban moderates," Reuters reports.
Pakistan advised President Barack Obama's special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan on Tuesday to reach out to reconcilable elements of the Taliban movement as part of a strategy for peace in the region.
Envoy Richard Holbrooke met with President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and army chief General Ashfaq Kayani during a visit that will last until Thursday.
The United States, NATO, and Afghanistan should by all means reach out to "Taliban moderates." In fact this has been going on for years via a program to bring in low and mid-level commanders over to the side of the government. The effort has had some minor successes but the rising violence has driven many Taliban moderates away from the program in the South.
Perhaps it would be nice if someone - say the Pakistanis who keep pushing this line - identified precisely these moderates that can end the insurgency. If anyone finds an influential Taliban moderate inside of Afghanistan that is willing to end the insurgency, by all means please let us know. Advice to Ambassador Holbrooke: if the answer is Wakil Ahmad Mutawakil, Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef, and Mullah Mohamed Tayeb Agha, you know you've been had.
