Qatar invites Pakistan to attend signing of US-Taliban peace deal

ISLAMABAD: Qatar on Tuesday invited Pakistan to attend the signing of the landmark peace deal between the US and the Afghan Taliban in Doha on Saturday.
Qatar's ambassador to Pakistan Saqr bin Mubarak, on behalf of the Qatari Foreign Minister, extended an invitation to Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Tuesday, state-run Radio Pakistan reported.

Qureshi welcomed the peace deal between the US and the Taliban, saying Pakistan had always held the view that there was no military solution to the Afghan conflict.

He said Pakistan and Qatar have played a "pivotal role" in furthering the Afghan reconciliation process.

Qureshi also expressed the confidence that the peace deal will lead to intra Afghan dialogue.

The deal would end America's longest war in Afghanistan where the US has lost over 2,400 soldiers since late 2001, when it invaded the country after the 9/11 terror attacks.

The US currently has less than 14,000 troops in Afghanistan, but military officials would not confirm the exact number.