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Progress stalls in Afghan peace talks as sides ‘await Biden’
Afghan peace talks that resumed four days ago are effectively on hold, sources from both sides said on Wednesday, as negotiators wait for President-elect Joe Biden to signal whether he will stick to Donald Trump’s aggressive schedule to pull out troops, Reuters reported.
This comes after a month-long break, which saw most, but not all, negotiators return to Doha last week for the resumption of talks.
A diplomatic source in Kabul told Reuters on Wednesday that expectations were low for progress before Biden takes office on January 20.
The sides “do not want to commit to anything before the 20th. They wanted to have the process going in the meantime because that was one of the requirements of the international community, so they have the process. But it is stagnant,” the diplomatic source said.
In an agreement signed between the US and the Taliban last year, Washington agreed to a full withdrawal by April this year.
The agreement was however conditions based and the Taliban is expected to meet certain security conditions before the last of the troops leave Afghanistan.
The Afghan government says these conditions have not been met while Biden and his advisors have so far given few clues as to their plans.
“We are waiting for the new US administration and their policies towards Afghanistan to see whether they would respect the peace accord,” a Taliban negotiator told Reuters on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak publicly.
“If they don’t honour their commitment of withdrawing their forces as promised…then we would need to make tough decisions by appointing hardliners to key positions on the ground.”
After months of little progress, the sides finally agreed ground rules for talks late last year. The talks then broke up in December, in part to allow negotiators to return home for consultations with their leadership.
The sides announced last week they would re-start talks on Saturday. But so far only limited meetings between smaller teams called ‘contact groups’ have taken place, three diplomatic and Afghan government sources told Reuters.
About four key members of the Taliban negotiating team were not yet in Qatar, the group’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters.
He said this was due to logistical issues travelling from remote areas where they were visiting family. They would arrive in the next few days and the delay would not affect the talks.
Some Afghan government negotiators were also not yet in Doha. One, who has been receiving treatment for cancer, told Reuters she planned to travel there this week.
During Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to New Delhi, India and Russia issued a joint statement highlighting their close coordination on Afghanistan. Both sides appreciated the ongoing dialogue between their respective Security Councils and underscored the significance of the Moscow Format meetings in promoting regional stability.
The leaders welcomed counter-terrorism efforts targeting international terrorist groups, including ISIS, ISKP, and their affiliates, expressing confidence in a comprehensive and effective approach to combating terrorism in Afghanistan. They also stressed the urgent need to ensure uninterrupted humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people.
India and Russia have maintained close ties on regional security, particularly concerning developments in Afghanistan following the Islamic Emirate’s return to power in 2021. The Moscow Format, a diplomatic platform including Afghanistan’s neighbors, has played a key role in facilitating dialogue on peace, stability, and counter-terrorism in the region.
Five civilians were killed and five others wounded in firing by Pakistani troops on Spin Boldak district of Kandahar province late on Friday, sources told Ariana News.
The attack comes two days after a new round of peace talks between Afghanistan and Pakistan reportedly ended without a breakthrough, though both sides agreed to continue their fragile ceasefire.
The recent talks in Saudi Arabia were the latest in a series of meetings hosted by Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia aimed at easing tensions after deadly clashes near the Durand Line in October. Dozens were killed in the clashes in October.
Islamabad claims that Afghanistan-based militants carried out the recent attacks in Pakistan. Kabul denies the allegations, saying it cannot be held responsible for security inside Pakistan.
Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Islamic Emirate, said Afghan forces had responded to the recent Pakistani attacks.
Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Hussain Andrabi says both Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Sadyr Japarov, the President of Kyrgyzstan, who visited Islamabad on Thursday, expressed their mutual commitment to a peaceful, stable Afghanistan with a sustainable future for the Afghan people.
Speaking in a press conference on Friday, Andrabi stated that both sides agreed that the Islamic Emirate must fulfill its obligations toward the international community and take concrete steps against terrorist groups to address Pakistan’s legitimate security concerns.
This comes while the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has repeatedly emphasized that no terrorist groups operate from Afghan territory and that it will not allow anyone to use Afghan soil against any country.
The Islamic Emirate has also stated that Pakistan’s security concerns are an internal issue of that country, and Pakistan itself must take measures to prevent any security incidents.
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