Second round of intra-Afghan peace talks officially underway

The Peace Negotiation Team of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan confirmed late Wednesday night that the second round of intra-Afghan talks has officially started. 

In a Twitter post, the Republic’s team said: “The second round of intra-Afghan talks began during a preliminary meeting (on Wednesday). 

“It was decided that the teams designated by both sides would begin their work on Saturday to discuss the issues on the agenda,” the team said. 

Taliban spokesman Mohammad Naeem also confirmed that talks had resumed in Doha after a three-week break. 

On December 12, peace negotiators in Doha reported that both sides had exchanged their lists about the agenda of the peace negotiations and that the second phase of the talks would begin on January 5.

However due to a “technical delay”, the Afghan Republic’s talks team only left Kabul on Tuesday. 

Just days before their recess in December, the teams reached an agreement on a 21-article list of procedural rules for peace talks after three months of discussions.

Last month, sources familiar with the matter said that a 28-article draft agenda has been handed to the Taliban by the Afghan team and the Taliban had given a 21-article agenda draft to the republic’s negotiators. 

The first round of peace negotiations between teams from the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Taliban started on September 12.