China lauds Afghan govt’s announcement of temporary ceasefire with Taliban

BEIJING: China on Friday appreciated the Afghan government’s announcement of a temporary ceasefire with the Taliban.

“China always believes that the military means cannot solve the Afghan problem and hopes that all parties in the world will move in the opposite direction, start peace talks at an early date and work together to achieve peace and stability in Afghanistan,” Chinese foreign ministry’s spokesperson Hua Chunying said during her regular press briefing here.

She said the Chinese side has always firmly supported the "Afghan-led, Afghan-owned" reconciliation process in Afghanistan and is willing to continue to play a constructive role.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani announced on June 7 that in order to implement the decree issued by the Ulema Council of Afghanistan on June 4, the Afghan government will temporarily suspend the fire with the Taliban from June 12 to 20.

Responding to about Iranian President’s visit to China for participation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit, she remarked that Iran is an SCO observer country.

At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Iranian President Rohani will jointly attend a working visit to China at the SCO Qingdao Summit.

The heads of state of China and Iran will have an in-depth exchange of views on bilateral relations and international and regional issues of common concern, she added.

Hua Chunying said since China and Iran established a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2016, exchanges and cooperation in various fields between the two countries have continued to advance.

China is willing to work together with Iran to take President Rohani’s visit as an opportunity to strengthen the Sino-Iranian cooperation in building “One Belt and One Road” and promote the steady development of Sino-Iranian relations, she added.