Prime Minister Gilani leaves for 3-day Qatar visit

Gilani heads to Qatar to discuss Afghan peace efforts in the ultra-rich Gulf state where the Taliban and US officials have begun preliminary contacts.
Pakistan, which last week sought to reach out to Afghanistan following a period of particularly bad relations over violence plaguing both countries, insists that any process to end the 10-year war in Afghanistan be Afghan-led.
President Hamid Karzai is believed to have felt sidelined by contacts between the United States and the Taliban, who are leading an increasingly deadly insurgency against his government and 130,000 US-led foreign troops.
Islamabad has officially billed Gilani s three-day visit to Qatar as an opportunity to boost ties and maximise trade.
"He will meet among others the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani and Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani," foreign ministry spokesman Abdul Basit said."The prime minister s visit is aimed at opening new vistas for enhanced mutual cooperation and activating the existing structured mechanisms and institutional linkages," he added.