UNITED NATIONS, Sept 22: The United States, Russia and China joined the five countries neighbouring Afghanistan in calling for a cease-fire among warring factions there, and urged them to work towards forging a broad-based government.The eight countries, which included Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, also agreed yesterday that Lakhdar Brahimi, the chief UN negotiator for Afghanistan, should visit the region to try to reduce tensions. Brahimi said he expected to travel to the region sometime next month.The agreements were reached during a meeting held yesterday at the United Nations on the sidelines of the general assembly debate that was attended by Brahimi and Secretary-General Kofi Annan.``The United States believes that the time has come for serious efforts to bring peace to Afghanistan,'' State department spokesman James Rubin told reporters after the meeting, which was attended by US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.He said that Washington called on othercountries to stop supplying arms to Afghanistan, and help in an effort to stamp out the drug trade. Washington believes that much of the war effort of the hard-line Taliban militia that rules nearly all of Afghanistan is financed by drug trafficking.The Taliban rules nearly all of Afghanistan with an iron hand and have imposed harsh Islamic rules that include depriving education to girls and women. The Talibans are still engaged in fighting with an opposition coalition.Tensions between Iran and the Talibans have risen since the militants overran the city of Mazar-e-Sharif in northern Afghanistan on August 8 and killed several Iranian diplomats posted there. Iran has massed 2,00,000 troops on its border with Afghanistan since then.The Talibans have returned the bodies of seven of the Iranians to Tehran, and have released a total of ten Iranian captives. ``We have put our priority on a diplomatic solution and we will continue every effort in order to make sure that this situation finds a diplomaticsolution,'' said Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif.Pakistan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sartaj Aziz, whose country is widely believed to be the force backing the Taliban, called for the international community to engage in direct talks with the Taliban, saying that would make them more responsible.``If you make them part of the international community they will certainly feel accountable and answerable and responsible,'' Aziz told reporters.The so-called ``six-plus-two'' group agreed on the following points, according to an outline of their agreement: All warring forces should immediately release non-combatants, including Iranians. The Taliban should return the remains of the three Iranian diplomats, and cooperate in an international investigation which would bring the killers to justice. The United Nations should investigate the reports of mass killings of ethnic groups by the Taliban. The Taliban should respect humanitarian law andhuman rights, including the rights of women, and cease providing a haven for terrorists or engage in drugs trafficking. All factions should provide safe conditions for the return of suspended humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. All parties should exercise maximum restraint and solve their problems peacefully.
