The US-Taliban stalled peace process is expected to resume soon as the Special Envoy for Afghan peace, Zalmay Khalilzad, will be arriving in Qatar, where he will meet to resume the talks with the Afghan Taliban negotiators.
The US Foreign Department stated on Wednesday, according to which Khalilzad will resume the negotiation with the Taliban on the ceasefire in Afghanistan and to find a durable solution to the crisis.
Earlier, Khalilzad had flown from Kabul, where he had been meeting and discussing with the Afghan authorities to discuss the prospects of a political compromise with the Taliban.
The recent development follows the surprise Trump visit to Afghanistan on November 28 to meet the US soldiers for the thanksgiving holiday.
It must be remembered that President Trump had abruptly suspended the year-long peace initiative between the US and the Afghan Taliban in September. The President said that the dialogues with the Taliban completely ended following the Kabul attack in September.
According to a local media house of Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalil had come to Kabul to discuss the resumption of dialogues between Afghan politicians and the Taliban.
Meanwhile, the Afghan President’s Office said that both countries had been seeking a peaceful solution to the 18-year-long war in Afghanistan.
The Presidential spokesman, Sediq Seddiqi, stated that both countries have a joint roadmap for peace. We hope our collective efforts to end the war will bring fruit.
Furthermore, a Deputy Assistant Secretary of the US State Department also visited Kabul. In her visit, Nancy Jackson also met Afghanistan’s Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah.
Besides, the Haqqani Network’s leader, Anas Haqqani, said in a separate statement that he would try his best to facilitate the peace process. He said if God willing, he will use all his capabilities to bring peace to the war-afflicted nation. Mr. Haqqani was among those prisoners who were part of the most recent prisoner sway between the Afghan Taliban and the governments of the US and Afghanistan.
Stalled Peace Process
The year-long peace process between the Taliban and the US government received a setback at the beginning of September. The US suspended the dialogue process following the Taliban-led Kabul blast that killed 12 people, including a US soldier.
Until the suspension of the dialogue process, it was believed the US and the Taliban were inches away from a peace agreement on Afghanistan.
President Trump had announced the suspension of dialogue on September 8 in a tweet. He revealed that he was about to meet the Taliban leaders at Camp David.
He said that his meeting with the Taliban leaders was scheduled and that it was his idea to call the meeting. Likewise, it was his idea to call it off after the Kabul attack.
President added that he had not shared the idea of meeting the Taliban with anyone. He said he canceled the Camp David meeting because the Taliban did what they were not supposed to do.
In response, the Taliban spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, issued a statement denouncing the President on a range of issues, including his change of mind on holding talks with ISIS.
In addition, the Taliban said that they would not announce any ceasefire before a deal with the US. The senior Taliban official also said that they would not hold any meetings with the Afghan government before a peace deal is finalized with the US.
