ISLAMABAD - Pakistan is set to participate in the signing ceremony of the US-Taliban peace deal in Doha on February 29 after Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi received an official invitation yesterday.

Qatari ambassador Saqr bin Mubarak Al-Mansouri called on Foreign Minister Qureshi here and handed over a special invitation from Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar Sheikh Mohammad Bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, for the signing ceremony of the US-Taliban peace deal in Doha.

The ambassador remarked that Qatar looked forward to receive Foreign Minister Qureshi at the signing ceremony on February 29, said a foreign ministry statement.

“The Foreign Minister appreciated the invitation and stated that he looked forward to the US-Taliban peace deal signing ceremony,” it added.

Yesterday, US President Donald Trump said in New Delhi that Washington was working on a peace deal with the Taliban and “everyone is happy even people who are against me 99.9% of the time. People are really happy to see a peace deal being struck. Other administrations have been trying to do something.”

He said that the US was engaged in talks with the Taliban with a view to end 18-year war in Afghanistan that has been a major strain on the US militarily and politically.

Pakistan has already said that the US-Taliban peace deal in the coming days will provide an opportunity for durable stability in Afghanistan and the region.