United Nations-sponsored talks over the future of Afghanistan will be held in Germany next week, and the former king of Afghanistan is willing to send a delegation to the conference, said reports.
Reuters quoted a spokesman for the king as saying that "a delegation will go in principle,'' adding that the ex-king's entourage was waiting for full details and a formal invitation.
UN special envoy Francesc Vendrell said earlier Tuesday the talks, intended to map out the formation of a government for Afghanistan, would begin Monday in Germany.
The former monarch, Mohammad Zahir Shah, who has lived in exile in Italy since his overthrow in a bloodless coup in 1973, has called for the creation of a broad-based government of national unity in Kabul.
UN diplomats, backed by major Western powers, are not seeking to restore the monarchy, but view Zahir Shah as a vital rallying point for efforts to set up a government that could bring peace to a ravaged and ethnically divided land, according to the agency.
CNN said that the Northern Alliance has already received and accepted an invitation to discuss Afghanistan's future with the United Nations and other Afghan representatives.
"This is a difficult time in Afghanistan and the fact that they (Northern Alliance) are willing to travel abroad in this rather challenging circumstances is a signal of flexibility," Vendrell, who is the deputy of UN envoy to Afghanistan Lakhdar Brahimi was quoted as saying.
"The meeting in Germany will be a first but very important step towards achieving the dreams and the hopes of all Afghans."
Vendrell said they have not yet confirmed the city where the meeting will take place, but it is planned to open on Monday, according to CNN.
Ahead of the US-led onslaught on Afghanistan, the former king struck a deal with the Taliban's main foe, the Northern Alliance, to work together toward creating a government of national unity.
Since then, relations between the two sides has cooled and the king's men were furious last week when the Northern Alliance poured into Kabul despite previous assurances that it would stay out of the Afghan capital.
The king comes from Afghanistan's main Pashtun ethnic group, as is the case with the majority of Taliban - Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
