Skip to main content
Latest news
Thumbnail

US, Taliban Resume Talks After Deadly Attack On Afghan Soldiers

The United States and the Taliban on Tuesday resumed their talks in Qatar’s capital Doha after the two sides reportedly agreed on an agenda for talks which includes the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan and the assurance that no threat will be posed against other nations from Afghan territory.

"Following American acceptance of the agenda of ending the invasion of Afghanistan and preventing Afghanistan from being used against other countries in the future, talks with American representatives took place today in Doha, the capital of Qatar. The session will also continue tomorrow," said Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban.

Talks between the US and the Taliban have gathered momentum despite the deterioration of security in the country. Just a day earlier Taliban fighters attacked a military facility of Afghanistan’s intelligence service – National Directorate of Security (NDS) - in Maidan Shahr, the capital of Maidan Wardak province, which is just a few kilometers east of Kabul.

At least 36 soldiers were killed and dozens more were wounded.

Meanwhile, the High Peace Council (HPC), a body tasked to facilitate talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban has expressed serious reservations about the current nature of the peace talks between the US and the Taliban, saying the continuation of such talks in the absence of the Afghan government will further complicate chances of sealing lasting peace in the country.

“Any meeting which will continue in this manner will likely not support restoring peace and stability in Afghanistan,” HPC spokesman Sayed Ehsan Tahiri said.

“US forces’ mission and their withdrawal from Afghanistan is one of the key topics on the agenda of the talks and (so is) the issue that Afghanistan will pose no threat to any other country once the US forces leave,” said former Taliban official Hassan Haqyar.

The issue of withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan has been one of the key topics during four rounds of talks between the two sides—US and the Taliban.

However, US special envoy for Afghanistan reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad said after previous meetings that the next government will decide on the withdrawal of US forces.

“He (Khalilzad) had said that let our forces remain in Afghanistan and the US will fix a date for their pullout, but this timeframe is not the final one, you (Taliban) come and participate in the interim government and let the next government decide on the presence or withdrawal of US forces, but the Taliban rejects the proposal,” political analyst Wahid Muzhda said.

In addition to this, Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mahmoud Qureshi has also said that to achieve durable peace, there is a need to pave the way for intra-Afghan dialogue.

“Unless the Afghans sit together and do not forget their pain and suffering and do not think about the future of their country and peace and stability, Pakistan cannot do anything on its own,” he said.

The US and Taliban held their third round of talks in December in the United Arab Emirates - in a meeting facilitated by Pakistan and observed by senior officials from Saudi Arabia and UAE. 

Khalilzad last week said the US was ready to address the legitimate concerns of all Afghan sides in a peace process that will ensure Afghanistan’s sovereignty and independence.

“Let me be clear: the US wants peace. … To achieve peace, we are ready to address legitimate concerns of all Afghan sides in a process that ensures Afghan independence and sovereignty, and accounts for legitimate interests of regional states. Urgent that fighting ends,” he said.

US, Taliban Resume Talks After Deadly Attack On Afghan Soldiers

HPC expresses reservations about the continuation of talks between the US and the Taliban without the Afghan government.

Thumbnail

The United States and the Taliban on Tuesday resumed their talks in Qatar’s capital Doha after the two sides reportedly agreed on an agenda for talks which includes the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan and the assurance that no threat will be posed against other nations from Afghan territory.

"Following American acceptance of the agenda of ending the invasion of Afghanistan and preventing Afghanistan from being used against other countries in the future, talks with American representatives took place today in Doha, the capital of Qatar. The session will also continue tomorrow," said Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban.

Talks between the US and the Taliban have gathered momentum despite the deterioration of security in the country. Just a day earlier Taliban fighters attacked a military facility of Afghanistan’s intelligence service – National Directorate of Security (NDS) - in Maidan Shahr, the capital of Maidan Wardak province, which is just a few kilometers east of Kabul.

At least 36 soldiers were killed and dozens more were wounded.

Meanwhile, the High Peace Council (HPC), a body tasked to facilitate talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban has expressed serious reservations about the current nature of the peace talks between the US and the Taliban, saying the continuation of such talks in the absence of the Afghan government will further complicate chances of sealing lasting peace in the country.

“Any meeting which will continue in this manner will likely not support restoring peace and stability in Afghanistan,” HPC spokesman Sayed Ehsan Tahiri said.

“US forces’ mission and their withdrawal from Afghanistan is one of the key topics on the agenda of the talks and (so is) the issue that Afghanistan will pose no threat to any other country once the US forces leave,” said former Taliban official Hassan Haqyar.

The issue of withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan has been one of the key topics during four rounds of talks between the two sides—US and the Taliban.

However, US special envoy for Afghanistan reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad said after previous meetings that the next government will decide on the withdrawal of US forces.

“He (Khalilzad) had said that let our forces remain in Afghanistan and the US will fix a date for their pullout, but this timeframe is not the final one, you (Taliban) come and participate in the interim government and let the next government decide on the presence or withdrawal of US forces, but the Taliban rejects the proposal,” political analyst Wahid Muzhda said.

In addition to this, Pakistan’s foreign minister Shah Mahmoud Qureshi has also said that to achieve durable peace, there is a need to pave the way for intra-Afghan dialogue.

“Unless the Afghans sit together and do not forget their pain and suffering and do not think about the future of their country and peace and stability, Pakistan cannot do anything on its own,” he said.

The US and Taliban held their third round of talks in December in the United Arab Emirates - in a meeting facilitated by Pakistan and observed by senior officials from Saudi Arabia and UAE. 

Khalilzad last week said the US was ready to address the legitimate concerns of all Afghan sides in a peace process that will ensure Afghanistan’s sovereignty and independence.

“Let me be clear: the US wants peace. … To achieve peace, we are ready to address legitimate concerns of all Afghan sides in a process that ensures Afghan independence and sovereignty, and accounts for legitimate interests of regional states. Urgent that fighting ends,” he said.

Share this post

Comment this post