[Dawn] Providing no other details about who was taking part or what would be discussed, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf...
Thursday said talks have started with the Pak Taliban.
He said peace talks must take place inside the framework of Pakistain's constitution. That could pose difficulties because the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pak (TTP) was demanding a much harsher version of Islamic law (Shariah Law) across the country than allowed in the constitution.
Sharif was elected in part by promising to negotiate with faceless myrmidons in the country's northwest who have killed thousands of civilians and security forces. However,
a person who gets all wrapped up in himself makes a mighty small package...
the faceless myrmidons have shown little appetite for talks.
Sharif's comments came during a meeting in London with British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg and were released in a statement by the Pak High Commission there.
Many in Pakistain are frustrated that years of military operations in the tribal areas, where the faceless myrmidons have their safe havens, have failed to end the violence. They see negotiations as a necessary step.
Representatives of the country's major political parties backed Sharif's plan for negotiations in early September. His government has been under pressure to show progress ever since.
The Talibs have demanded that Pakistain stop supporting the US-led war in Afghanistan, and that the Mighty Pak Army withdraws troops from the tribal areas of northwest Pakistain that border with Afghanistan.
They've also demanded an end to American drone strikes in the tribal areas. Drones are a particular touchy subject for many Paks who view them as an infringement on their illusory sovereignty.