Pakistan's new political sensation Imran Khan has said that he can negotiate with the Taliban to end the "so-called war on terrorism" if he is given the mandate to do so.
"I can talk to them [the Taliban] if the government and parties concerned sanction this and ask me to get involved. I am ready to talk to them in the best interest of the country because this war is ‘burying' Pakistan," Khan told Gulf News on the sidelines of a fund-raising dinner for his Shaukat Khanum Memorial Trust (SKMT) which runs a cancer hospital in Lahore. The event was held at the Atlantis Hotel on Palm Jumeirah in Dubai and was attended by more than 1,000 people from different nationalities, mainly the Pakistani elite in the UAE.
Reacting to a question about the Taliban's move to open an office in Qatar, Khan said there was no harm in it as it was the first positive step towards holding talks with them. "I told the world some eight years ago that there was no military solution to this problem as the only way out is to hold talks and settle it politically but at that time they called me ‘Taliban Khan' but now they all agree with me as they could not win this so-called war on terrorism," he said.
Khan said it was important for Pakistan to get out of the US war on terrorism because the country had already suffered losses to the tune of $50 billion (Dh183.6 billion) during the last ten years leading to economic crisis, poverty and instability. "The sooner we get out of this war, the quicker Pakistan will get back on its feet," he added.
He said he could find a solution by talking to them because he knows the areas and the people.
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