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US Senate Committee Chair says troops withdrawal might be reconsidered
US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez said Tuesday that the US deadline, May 1, for troop withdrawal from Afghanistan may have to be reconsidered as the Taliban are not abiding by all of their commitments under the Doha deal.
“I am very concerned about the viability of the peace process in Afghanistan,” Menendez said.
Reuters reported Menendez stated that he believes the Taliban is “clearly not abiding” by all of the commitments it made in the US-Taliban agreement signed in Doha in February last year.
Currently, there are about 2,500 US soldiers in Afghanistan.
“If the Taliban are confirmed as not meeting their commitments, which I personally believe they’re not, then we may have to reconsider the May 1 deadline,” Menendez said.
This comes after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken proposed a new peace plan last week.
In a letter to Afghan leaders and the Taliban, Blinken suggested the establishment of a transitional government. It has since emerged that according to the plan, the Taliban would be given a 50 percent representation in the proposed system.
The proposal was however met by mixed reactions among Afghan officials.
First Vice President Amrullah Saleh stated that Afghanistan will never accept demands that could jeopardize the people’s right to vote.
He said the letter “shameful” and that he will “resist it”.
“Let me be clear I will not sign it,” Saleh said.
He also stated that the people of Afghanistan will not accept what he called a “forced and imposed peace on the people of Afghanistan”.
“One of the articles is to form a supreme council for the enforcement of Sharia [law]. In the county where we have several scholars like Imam Abu Hanifa; now two people who graduated from Haqqania School will hand over a certificate of Islam to us. I will never sign at the bottom of that shameful document,” said Saleh.
“We have the right not to hang the fate of 35 million people on someone else’s schedule,” he said adding that “Americans and their Western allies have every right to decide the fate of 2,500 U.S. and a few thousand NATO troops now stationed in our country.”
Terrorist activities continue to be observed along Afghanistan borders and along the India–Pakistan–Afghanistan corridor, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview published on Monday.
Speaking to Russia-based media outlet TV BRICS, Lavrov pointed to ongoing concerns in the Middle East, including its Asian regions.
He highlighted the importance of collaboration with India at the United Nations to advance a global counter-terrorism convention.
Lavrov stated that while the draft convention has already been prepared, consensus on its adoption has not yet been reached.
Russia has repeatedly expressed concern about militant threats from Afghanistan. The Islamic Emirate, however, has dismissed the concerns saying that it will not allow Afghanistan’s soil to be used against any country.
Noorullah Noori, Afghanistan’s Minister of Borders and Tribal Affairs, held a phone conversation with Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, to discuss bilateral border cooperation.
According to the Iranian news agency IRNA, both sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening border collaboration, with a particular focus on the ongoing renovation and updating of border markers. They also agreed to accelerate joint technical and legal meetings to enhance coordination.
As part of the agreement, the next meeting of senior border officials from Afghanistan and Iran is scheduled to take place in Iran in 1405 (2026–2027).
The Director General of the OIC Mission in Kabul, Mohammed Saeed Alayyash, met on Sunday with Rolf Dieter Reinhard, Head of the German Liaison Office for Afghanistan in Doha and Acting Chargé d’Affaires of the German Embassy in Afghanistan.
During the discussion, both sides exchanged views on the latest developments in Afghanistan. They focused on the security situation, as well as the humanitarian and economic conditions faced by the Afghan people.
The two officials also reviewed recent political developments and broader challenges in the country, highlighting the need for continued international engagement and support.
The meeting emphasized the importance of ongoing cooperation and coordination between the OIC Mission and the German side in addressing Afghanistan’s challenges and in supporting efforts to promote stability and improve the humanitarian situation.
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