Turkish, Afghan foreign ministers talk over phone

By Serife Cetin

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Sunday spoke by phone with his Afghan counterpart Mohammad Hanif Atmar, said Turkish diplomatic sources.

Mevlut Cavusoglu and Mohammad Hanif Atmar discussed the Afghan peace process, according to the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The two top diplomats discussed the developments regarding the forthcoming peace conference in Istanbul, the date of which is yet to be announced.

The Taliban and Afghan government representatives are deadlocked in peace talks in Qatar meant to end decades of war and come up with a path for a post-war Afghan society.

Turkey has fully supported the dialogue process and is in contact with all stakeholders for reduction in violence in the war-torn country.

"We need a comprehensive cease-fire for a political settlement. Despite the slow pace of progress, the peace process is the only way forward, and we should all give our full support," Cavusoglu had told the 9th Ministerial Meeting of the Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process, in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, last month.