Taliban Has No Political Will For Peace: Abdullah’s Office

Abdullah, who has 50 percent share of the National Unity Government with President Ghani as part of an agreement signed between the two sides in 2014, has often criticized the Taliban for being a hurdle for peace.
In a tweet on May 6, Abdullah called the Taliban a “crime network” and said it has no cause and no conviction other than a “vandal’s desire to violence and destruction”.
Abdullah said the “crime network” will never be allowed to return through “the backdoor in the name of peace”.
“We have doubt in Taliban’s will (for peace), because neither are they ready for a ceasefire and nor they want intra-Afghan talks,” Khwazoon told TOLOnews on Tuesday.
It is almost a week that the US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad and some key members of the Taliban are holding talks on Afghan peace in Doha, however, the two sides so far have not reached a final deal on issues under debate which are troop withdrawal, counterterrorism assurances, a ceasefire and intra-Afghan dialogue.
“The issues are quite complicated, therefore, the two sides need to think more and it takes time,” said Nasrullah Stanekzai, a university lecturer in Kabul.
“They (the US and the Taliban) have inched closer to some agreements. There is the possibility that they reach an agreement about foreign forces withdrawal,” political analyst Hassan Haqyar said.
The Taliban has said the group will talk about a ceasefire once an agreement is reached with the US on a timeframe for the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan and on counterterrorism assurances. But the US insists that nothing will be agreed until an agreement on the four key issues.
“We hope that the Qatar talks will provide the ground for a ceasefire and intra-Afghan dialogue,” said Ghafoor Ahmad Jawed, a spokesman for the High Peace Council.
This comes as Khalilzad on Monday held talks with India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and briefed her on peace efforts in Afghanistan, the Indian Foreign Affairs Ministry’s spokesman Raveesh Kumar said in a tweet on Monday.
“Both discussed the role of all regional stakeholders in bringing peace and development in Afghanistan,” Kumar said. “India will work with key partners in days ahead.”
In a tweet on the occasion of Ramadhan on Tuesday, Khalilzad said Afghans have suffered war’s catastrophic impact for too long and that he hopes all Afghans take this season to reflect, forgive, and renew faith and commitment to end violence and embrace peace.