No need for an interim govt: Sarwar Danish

Second Vice President Sarwar Danish said on Wednesday that Afghanistan does not need an interim government in order to reach a peace agreement with the Taliban.

Speaking at an event in Kabul, Danish said that it does not make sense to live under the Republic’s flat and to seek an interim government.

“Those who say that we are pro-republic and against the emirate, meanwhile seek an interim government – they either don’t know the terms of policies or are unfamiliar with historic events… or they have strong relations with foreigners against Afghanistan,” he said.

Danish also warned that a peace deal without preserving democratic principles will intensify the war in Afghanistan.

“If voting processes, republic norms and general citizenship rights are not considered in the peace talks, lasting peace will not be reached,” Danish said.

Meanwhile, Inayatullah Babar Farahmand, deputy head of the High Council for National Reconciliation (HCNR) said that the Afghan constitution needs to be amended and the current republic system is not in the interests of the people.

“Such a republic system is not in the interest of people and political participation is on paper,” said Farahmand.

On the other hand, Fazl Ahmad Manawi, minister of justice, said that no one can impose their will by using force.

This comes after a number of Afghan politicians said last week that the Zalmay Khalilzad, US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation, carried a message to meetings recently about the establishment of an interim government.

Sources close to President Ashraf Ghani said at the time that he refused to meet with Khalilzad because of this. On Saturday Ghani addressed a gathering and stated he would only hand over power to an elected successor.

However, on Wednesday, US Chargé d’Affaires in Kabul Ross Wilson rejected the claims of the US wanting an interim government.

“We have not advocated, and the United States is not advocating, an interim government,” Wilson said in a series of tweets.

He said the United States is committed to bringing about an end to conflict in Afghanistan through a political settlement that ensures the country remains sovereign, unified and democratic, is at peace with itself and its neighbors and can preserve gains made over the last 19 years.

He stated that the first phase of Afghanistan Peace Negotiations in Doha constituted an important step forward, “but much remains to be done”.

“The United States remains firm in its call for an immediate reduction of violence and ceasefire,” he said.

Wilson also stated that he had spoken with the US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad and that he has “and will continue to talk with Afghans about the need to accelerate the talks in Doha and solicited from those we have met their ideas, as well as their concerns.”