Top Turkish diplomat, Afghan counterpart speak on phone

ANKARA In a Saturday phone call, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and his Afghan counterpart Hanif Atmar spoke about the Afghan peace process, according to diplomatic sources. The two discussed a meeting on the peace process set to be held in Istanbul on April, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media. On Friday, Cavusoglu said in the coming weeks the Turkish government would host a senior-level meeting between Afghan government representatives and the Taliban to help finalize a peace deal. He stressed that Turkey would also appoint a special envoy for Afghanistan to contribute to the process.