Mohammad Karim Khalili, former vice president and leader of the Hizb-e-Wahdat Islami Afghanistan party, warned on Tuesday that the war in the country could intensify if the peace process fails.

Addressing a public gathering in Bamiyan, Khalili stated: “If the peace process faces a stalemate; we are worried [about what happens] on the other side of the issue; that the war would intensify; the situation would get worse,” he said adding that this is what parties to the process need to keep in mind. 

Khalili also called on the warring parties to prepare to make sacrifices and concessions in order to achieve and maintain peace in the war-weary country.

“If the peace agreement is not formed in the shadow of justice, a new conflict, a new crisis, and a different conflict will take shape,” he said.

He warned that Afghanistan could face a new crisis if “a fair peace agreement is not formed.”

He also said the people of Afghanistan, of all ethnicities, and political parties would resist any “imposed” settlement. 

Khalili told the people: “No plan, no solution, and no talks will take place without your presence and participation.”

He also accused the government of following through on an “ethnic elimination policy” which he said could lead to a crisis in the country.

“They follow a policy of ethnic elimination; two of our experts have been forced to resign in just two days. Again, we do not want to be crisis creators. If this crisis were imposed on us, the people would solidly resist against them.” 

Meanwhile, Khalili called for a referendum over any future political system in Afghanistan, stating “Afghans should vote for the establishment of any future government.”

This comes after Washington proposed the establishment of an interim government in its bid to accelerate the peace process. 

The plan also called for President Ashraf Ghani to step aside. Ghani has in turn stated he will only hand over power to a democratically elected successor. 

Ghani also spoke out on Monday and said the “international community should hand over necessary guarantees for ensuring peace and end of the war.”

Ghani said any political decision he makes will be based on the Afghan Constitution.

He said the government’s aim is to forge an “independent, democratic, and united” Afghanistan.