A Taliban delegation led by its deputy leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar met Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday evening in Islamabad to discuss progress in the Intra-Afghan dialogue and other issues, TOLOnews reported. 

In the meeting, Prime Minister Khan expressed his concern over rising violence in Afghanistan and called on all sides for a reduction in the violence leading to a ceasefire. Khan also reiterated his stand that there is no military solution to the Afghan conflict and the warring sides should achieve a durable and stable peace through the intra-Afghan talks. 

He extended his country’s support for an inclusive, broad-based, and comprehensive political settlement. Khan also hoped that both sides would continue to build on the recent positive developments in the intra-Afghan talks.

On Friday, Gen Miller also called the Taliban "instigator" of violence. He said the insurgent group has been using violence as leverage over the Afghan government. The Taliban must reduce the violence, he added. 

If the violence level isn’t reduced in Afghanistan, Miller said, “My assessment is that it puts the peace process at risk. And higher the violence, higher the risk,” Gen Miller was quoted as saying by TOLOnews. This historic opportunity for peace shouldn’t be wasted, he added. 

On Thursday, Masoom Stanekzai, the head of the Afghan negotiation team, said in a conference, that the road ahead might be "very challenging" and peace efforts might open a “new wave of violence in the country.”