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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.”
Zalmay Khalilzad, the former US special representative for Afghanistan, has questioned Pakistan’s commitment to the welfare of the Afghan people, citing Islamabad’s policies over the past three decades.
Khalilzad said in a post on X that Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif advocated for the rights of Afghan women during his speech at the UN General Assembly on Friday.
Sharif said: “Fundamental rights of the Afghan people — especially women and girls — must be respected.”
Responding to the remarks, Khalilzad said Pakistan’s policies over the past 30 years raise questions about Sharif’s commitment to Afghan welfare.
He cited Pakistan’s support for militant groups against US forces and what he described as the poor treatment of Afghan refugees as examples.
Khalilzad also said Afghanistan and Pakistan need and should have much better relations, adding that “a reset is necessary.”
India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri met with the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Rabab Fatima, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on X that Misri underscored the need to keep addressing the humanitarian needs of the Afghan people as a priority.
Misri also appreciated the role of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and reaffirmed India’s continued cooperation with the United Nations on Afghanistan.
The meeting comes as Afghanistan continues to face humanitarian and economic challenges, with international agencies warning of significant needs among the Afghan population.
Kazakhstan’s Foreign Minister Mukhtar Tileuberdi has called for pragmatic and coordinated international engagement with Afghanistan, saying the country’s long-term stability is closely linked to the security and sustainable development of Central Asia.
Speaking during the general debate of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Friday, Tileuberdi said humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan remains essential but alone cannot break the cycle of poverty, displacement and dependency.
He said Kazakhstan supports a “pragmatic, coordinated and step-by-step” approach to international engagement with Afghanistan, with the United Nations playing a central role.
Tileuberdi also said Kazakhstan is working with the UN to operationalize the United Nations Regional Centre for the Sustainable Development Goals for Central Asia and Afghanistan in Almaty.
He said the success of the centre should be measured by the results and assistance it delivers to the region.
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