(Karachi) US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo spoke with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and discussed the importance of US-Pakistan cooperation on the Afghan peace process.

The conversation between the US Secretary of State and Qureshi comes at a time when the Afghan government and Taliban are preparing for a US-facilitated peace talks which will be held in Doha in coming months.

Productive call with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi today about continued cooperation on Afghan peace and the importance of supporting regional stability. I look forward to advancing our shared goals and increasing partnership.

— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) August 7, 2020

In a tweet, Pompeo said: "Productive call with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi today about continued cooperation on Afghan peace and the importance of supporting regional stability."

He stated, "I look forward to advancing our shared goals and increasing partnership."

Under an urgent demand by Washington, the Pakistani leaders have expressed support and hope for Afghan peace process. Earlier on April 12, Taliban released 20 prisoners of the Afghan government who were handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Kandahar. The Afghan government has so far released more than 300 Taliban prisoners.

As per the US-Taliban peace deal signed on February 29, 2020, the Afghan government would release 5,000 Taliban prisoners, while the armed group would free 1,000 Afghan prisoners of the Kabul administration prior to the start of intra-Afghan negotiations.