Afghan President Hamid Karzai went into a key meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif soon after his arrival on Monday on a trip to seek support for the revival of peace talks with Taliban and to improve frayed ties with Islamabad.

State-run Pakistan Television showed Sharif receiving Karzai at the palatial Prime Minister House, his official residence.

A Foreign Ministry official said that the two leaders will discuss all matters of “interest and concern” in the one-on-one meeting and then at the delegation level talks.

The Afghan ambassador to Pakistan said Karzai would urge Islamabad to use its influence with the militants to hold direct negotiations with the Kabul administration.

“He (Karzai) will focus on the need for Pakistan’s support to convince the Taliban to talk to Afghan officials directly,” Umer Daudzai said on the eve of the visit.

Officials told dpa that relocating the Taliban political office from Qatar to either Saudi Arabia or Turkey, and release of more militiamen from Pakistani jails would be at the top of the agenda.

It is Karzai’s first visit to Pakistan since the new government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif took office in June.

Pakistani officials said both Islamabad and Kabul had agreed to push for relocating the Taliban political office to another country, and a “specific venue” would be discussed during the visit.

The Foreign Ministry official also said Islamabad was willing to release more Taliban detainees, including former deputy leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, to facilitate peace talks.

“There can be progress on this but an immediate announcement is unlikely. Things will take some time to mature,” he said.

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