A representative of the Pakistan Peace Committee for Taliban Talks has said that the Pakistani military is not interested in seeing the Taliban come back to power in Afghanistan.
"In my opinion, as far as I had discussions and talks with military individuals, they think that if the Taliban come to power in Afghanistan it wouldn't be good, and the problems between the Taliban and Pakistan would increase," Committee member Rahimullah Yusufzai said. "On one hand, foreign aid will end in Afghanistan and on the other, many people won't accept Taliban government and war will start, that will encourage the Pakistani Taliban."
His comments come as many in Afghanistan and the West struggle to predict what lays in store for the country as the NATO coalition withdraws after 13 years of war.
Rustam Shah Mohmand, another member of the Committee and former Pakistani Ambassador to Kabul, has said that as long as foreign troops are present in Afghanistan, the Taliban will not participate in peace talks.
"The Taliban will not accept this government and Parliament," Mohmand said. "Whenever these troops leave, any government that is formed after their exit, the Taliban will be ready to talk to."
If true, Mohmand's assessment would likely mean a peace deal is impossible if the Kabul-Washington Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) gets signed and foreign troops stay in Afghanistan post-2014.
Many Afghan leaders have said that Pakistan is the key to peace with the Taliban. However, Islamabad has shown piecemeal commitment to facilitating the peace process for Kabul. Instead, Pakistani officials have seemed more focused on brokering peace with the militants in their own country.
The Pakistan Peace Committee for Talks With Taliban has four members. The nature of the Committee's contact with the Taliban, and whether or not any progress has been made, are unknown.