Afghanistan to participate in separate US, Russia-sponsored peace conferences
BY TAL AXELROD - 03/13/21
© Getty
The Afghan government will participate in two separate peace conferences arranged by the U.S. and Russia as negotiations between the government in Kabul and the Taliban stall.
The first conference, backed by Russia, will take place on Thursday, while the U.S.-sponsored summit will take place in Turkey next month.
“The Afghan government will take part in both the Moscow and Turkey conferences,” Hamdullah Mohib, the country’s national security council advisor, told reporters in Kabul, according to Reuters.
The Afghan National Security Council did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill.
The announcement comes as talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in Doha, Qatar, which have been backed by the U.S., fail to produce a final peace agreement.
The Taliban has halted attacks on U.S. troops as part of a peace deal negotiated during the Trump administration, but strikes against Afghan forces have continued.
The U.S. is staring down a May 1 deadline for foreign troops to withdraw from Afghanistan, though officials have indicated that the withdrawal will not move forward if the violence continues.
“I urge all parties to choose the path towards peace. The violence must decrease, now,” U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said last month.
“I told our allies that no matter what the outcome of our review, the United States will not undertake a hasty or disorderly withdrawal from Afghanistan,” he added, referring to talks with NATO allies. “There will be no surprises. We will consult each other, consult together and decide together and act together.”
The Taliban has threatened to renew attacks on American troops if they are not gone by May.
BY TAL AXELROD - 03/13/21
© Getty
The Afghan government will participate in two separate peace conferences arranged by the U.S. and Russia as negotiations between the government in Kabul and the Taliban stall.
The first conference, backed by Russia, will take place on Thursday, while the U.S.-sponsored summit will take place in Turkey next month.
“The Afghan government will take part in both the Moscow and Turkey conferences,” Hamdullah Mohib, the country’s national security council advisor, told reporters in Kabul, according to Reuters.
The Afghan National Security Council did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill.
The announcement comes as talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in Doha, Qatar, which have been backed by the U.S., fail to produce a final peace agreement.
The Taliban has halted attacks on U.S. troops as part of a peace deal negotiated during the Trump administration, but strikes against Afghan forces have continued.
The U.S. is staring down a May 1 deadline for foreign troops to withdraw from Afghanistan, though officials have indicated that the withdrawal will not move forward if the violence continues.
“I urge all parties to choose the path towards peace. The violence must decrease, now,” U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said last month.
“I told our allies that no matter what the outcome of our review, the United States will not undertake a hasty or disorderly withdrawal from Afghanistan,” he added, referring to talks with NATO allies. “There will be no surprises. We will consult each other, consult together and decide together and act together.”
The Taliban has threatened to renew attacks on American troops if they are not gone by May.
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