Islamabad, Jan 16

 Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said that he would contact the political leaders to help carry forward the dialogue process with the Taliban, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported Wednesday.

“I will talk to Imran Khan, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Maulana Samiul Haq and Syed Munawar Hassan. If they make any breakthrough, it would be a great pleasure for me. Hopefully, this will help the process move forward speedily and effectively," Sharif said in an interview with Geo News, the excerpts of which were aired Wednesday.

Pakistani Taliban refused to talk with the government after the killing of their chief, Hakimullah Mehsud, in a US drone attack in November 2013.

The prime minister said the participation of the then army chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and the ISI chief in the All Parties Conference last year, proved that the army was not separate from the nation.

He added that the military had left the issue to be resolved by the political and national leadership of the country and now it was the responsibility of the national leadership to move forward in unison.

By:IANS