DM Monitoring
KABUL: The negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban group, which started in September in Doha, Qatar to find a peaceful solution to Afghanistan’s prolonged crisis, have yet to bear results, while the security situation in the country has seen little improvement.
The talks were launched in the wake of the U.S.-Taliban peace deal inked in Doha on Feb. 29. The aim of the deal was to end the war in Afghanistan, withdraw thousands of U.S.-led foreign troops from the country and facilitate the intra-Afghan talks to find a political solution to the country’s prolonged war.
U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban second-in-command Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar signed the agreement, in the absence of the Afghan government.
Under the agreement, the intra-Afghan dialogue was supposed to begin on March 10, but it eventually started with a six-month delay on Sept. 12.
Although the intra-Afghan dialogue has started, the negotiating teams of the Afghan government and the Taliban outfit have yet to finalize the agenda and procedure of the talks.
To facilitate the talks, the Afghan government has set free over 5,000 Taliban prisoners in exchange for 1,000 security personnel held by the Taliban as part of the U.S.-Taliban agreement and in return demanded the Taliban to observe the ceasefire.
However, the Taliban outfit rejected the demand, saying that there will not be a ceasefire unless both sides reach an agreement on main issues including the future governing system of the country.
The armed group has been insisting on the restoration of Islamic Emirate — the former Taliban regime ousted by the U.S.-led military invasion in late 2001.
On the other side, the Afghan government described the current political system as an Islamic setup, saying the “Islamic Republic of Afghanistan” represents all Afghans and will not be compromised.
U.S. President Donald Trump has earlier announced to withdraw all the U.S. troops from Afghanistan by Christmas, a decision welcomed by the Taliban outfit, but the withdrawal has yet to be accomplished.
Parallel to peace efforts, security incidents have increased across Afghanistan as armed opposition groups intensified activities. The government has accused the Taliban militants of intensifying attacks to gain ground at the negotiating table, a claim rejected by the armed group.
