Imran Khan: Pakistan must talk to Taliban to achieve peace "Military operations without an overarching strategy to restore peace in the country are mere holding operations," he wrote. The [all parties conference] provides the legitimacy for a holistic approach, beginning with a structured dialogue. Military action and war are always the last resort option. He also called again for the Pakistan Taliban and its factions to be allowed to set up an office, from which to co-ordinate talks - rather like the failed attempt to allow the Afghan Taliban to establish an official presence in Doha. Abbas Nasir, a senior journalist, described his position as "naive and half-baked," while Murtaza Solangi, a broadcaster, said: "Imran Khan: more he speaks, more he shows his hollowness!" Nawaz Sharif was elected prime minister earlier this year, standing on a ticket that included a promise to talk to the Taliban. Military operations have had a limited impact on the group's ability to carry out suicide attacks from bases in the north-west. Previous peace deals have been used by militants to regroup and rearm, and the government has yet to flesh out how talks might proceed. Cyril Almeida, a columnist with the daily English-language Dawn newspaper, said the response to Mr Khan's comments showed they were ill-timed - but might not be out of step with mainstream sentiment. "Right now his message comes across as a bit tone deaf because of recent events, but the strain of his argument more often than not finds some sympathy with the average Pakistani, because it is an argument rooted in religion and nationalism," he said.