CrazyZ
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Trump is reminding him who is paying his bills and the USA signed this agreement.
Featured Afghanistan Peace Process
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Haris Ali2140
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Taliban Prepare to Start Intra-Afghan Talk
By Sharif Amiri TODAY - 10:22 PM
Pompeo in an interview with CBS' Face the Nation said the path forward in Afghanistan remains "rocky and bumpy" despite Taliban deal.
RELATED NEWS
Taliban representatives in Qatar said on Sunday they are now preparing to begin the intra-Afghan talks.
Suhail Shaheen, a spokesman for the Taliban's office in Qatar told TOLOnews that the group is ready to fulfill its commitments.
On the other hand, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a press conference after the signing said that the agreement will mean nothing if concrete actions on commitments and promises are not kept. And in an interview with CBS' Face the Nation on Sunday said the path forward in Afghanistan remains "rocky and bumpy" despite the deal.
So far it is not clear about where the Intra-Afghan talks will be hosted.
“It is still early to talk about the government system, and in the meeting between the Afghans, the two sides will discuss which system is in the interest of the Afghan people, and any system that is accepted by the majority will be approved...” said Khairullah Khairkhowa, a member of the Taliban’s office in Qatar.
“This is a historic day for the Afghan people, this agreement is important, but it is a first step for direct talks between the Taliban and Afghanistan, and when I say Afghanistan, I mean an inclusive, committed, government-led delegation. These delegations should be a reflection of Afghan society,” said Potzel Markus, German envoy for Afghanistan.
“Women should not worry about their education and rights to work, and we will guarantee their rights to work and education in light of Islamic principles. If they (women) obey Islamic hijab they will have no problems and should not worry,” said Suhail Shaheen, Taliban’s spokesman in Qatar.
While the government views the release of Taliban prisoners as one of the topics of discussions for the intra-Afghan talks, Taliban representatives in Qatar say on the basis of the peace agreement, the US has promised that Taliban prisoners will be released before talks between Afghans.
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan/taliban-prepare-start-intra-afghan-talks
By Sharif Amiri TODAY - 10:22 PM
Pompeo in an interview with CBS' Face the Nation said the path forward in Afghanistan remains "rocky and bumpy" despite Taliban deal.
RELATED NEWS
- Football Competition Held in Helmand to Celebrate Peace Deal
- Ghani and Abdullah Divided over Negotiating Team
Taliban representatives in Qatar said on Sunday they are now preparing to begin the intra-Afghan talks.
Suhail Shaheen, a spokesman for the Taliban's office in Qatar told TOLOnews that the group is ready to fulfill its commitments.
On the other hand, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a press conference after the signing said that the agreement will mean nothing if concrete actions on commitments and promises are not kept. And in an interview with CBS' Face the Nation on Sunday said the path forward in Afghanistan remains "rocky and bumpy" despite the deal.
So far it is not clear about where the Intra-Afghan talks will be hosted.
“It is still early to talk about the government system, and in the meeting between the Afghans, the two sides will discuss which system is in the interest of the Afghan people, and any system that is accepted by the majority will be approved...” said Khairullah Khairkhowa, a member of the Taliban’s office in Qatar.
“This is a historic day for the Afghan people, this agreement is important, but it is a first step for direct talks between the Taliban and Afghanistan, and when I say Afghanistan, I mean an inclusive, committed, government-led delegation. These delegations should be a reflection of Afghan society,” said Potzel Markus, German envoy for Afghanistan.
“Women should not worry about their education and rights to work, and we will guarantee their rights to work and education in light of Islamic principles. If they (women) obey Islamic hijab they will have no problems and should not worry,” said Suhail Shaheen, Taliban’s spokesman in Qatar.
While the government views the release of Taliban prisoners as one of the topics of discussions for the intra-Afghan talks, Taliban representatives in Qatar say on the basis of the peace agreement, the US has promised that Taliban prisoners will be released before talks between Afghans.
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan/taliban-prepare-start-intra-afghan-talks
CrazyZ
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Soft partition of Afghanistan is required in my opinion. Taliban rule the south and east. The north and west will be ruled by Abdullah Abdullah. A weak central government ruled by Ghani will exist only to funnel international aid to the local areas.
Haris Ali2140
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Looks like Ghani's time is over.
Haris Ali2140
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Haris Ali2140
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Pompeo dismisses Afghan rejection of key clause in US-Taliban deal
Secretary of State says deal signed on Saturday is historic and contains commitments by the Taliban to reduce violence
Martin Pengelly in New York and agencies
@MartinPengelly
Sun 1 Mar 2020 18.08 GMTLast modified on Mon 2 Mar 2020 04.10 GM
US Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar shake hands in Doha, Qatar. Photograph: EPA
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday brushed off the Afghan president’s rejection of a key clause of the US-Taliban deal he saw signed into effect on Saturday.
After Ashraf Ghani rejected a Taliban demand for the release of 5,000 prisoners which was included in the deal as a condition for further talks, Pompeo was asked if a major stumbling block had emerged only a day after the deal was signed.
He told CBS’s Face the Nation: “There have been prisoner releases from both sides before. We’ve managed to figure our path forward.”
Pompeo said the deal signed in Doha on Saturday, which will lead to US troop withdrawals, was historic and contained detailed commitments by the Taliban to reduce violence. He also expressed hope that talks would begin in the coming days between Afghanistan’s government and the Taliban, adding that Donald Trump would be actively engaged.
Pompeo gave no date for a Trump meeting with Taliban leaders, which the president promised at the White House on Saturday.
The deal faces criticism at home but in Kabul, Ghani told reporters: “The government of Afghanistan has made no commitment to free 5,000 Taliban prisoners.”
Under the accord, the US and the Taliban are committed to work expeditiously to release combat and political prisoners as a confidence-building measure, with the coordination and approval of all sides. The agreement calls for up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners to be released in exchange for up to 1,000 Afghan government captives by 10 March.
Ghani said it was “not in the authority of United States to decide” about the swap, because it was “only a facilitator”.
Speaking to CNN, the Afghan president said Trump had not asked for the release of the prisoners and the issue should be discussed as part of a comprehensive peace deal.
“The political consensus … that would be needed for such a major step does not exist today,” he said.
Ghani said key issues need to be discussed first, including the Taliban’s ties with Pakistan and other countries that had offered it sanctuary, its ties with what he called terrorist groups and drug cartels, and the place of Afghan security forces and its civil administration.
“The people of Afghanistan need to believe that we’ve gone from war to peace, and not that the agreement will be either a Trojan horse or the beginning of a much worse phase of conflict,” he said.
Pompeo said that though the Taliban “have an enormous amount of American blood on their hands”, they “have now made the break. They’ve said they will not permit terror to be thrust upon anyone, including the United States, from Afghanistan.”
Saturday’s accord was signed in Doha by US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban political chief Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, witnessed by Pompeo. Pompeo said he met “a senior Taliban negotiator”. Baradar met foreign ministers from Norway, Turkey and Uzbekistan and diplomats from Russia, Indonesia and other nations.
“The dignitaries who met Mullah Baradar expressed their commitments towards Afghanistan’s reconstruction and development … the US-Taliban agreement is historical,” said Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid.
In the US, Republicans in Congress expressed concerns about the logistics of the deal and trusting the Taliban, while Democrats demanded congressional involvement. In a Saturday briefing at the White House, Trump rejected all criticism and said he would meet Taliban leaders.
Aides to Ghani said Trump’s decision to meet the Taliban could pose a challenge to Afghanistan’s government at a time when the US troop withdrawal is imminent.
Washington is committed to reducing troops to 8,600 from 13,000 within 135 days of signing the deal. The US is also committed to work with allies to reduce the number of coalition forces, if the Taliban adheres to security guarantees and ceasefire. If so, a full withdrawal of all US and coalition forces will occur within 14 months.
The Taliban ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001 and imposed draconian restrictions on women’s rights and activities it deemed un-Islamic. After being ousted in a US-led invasion following the 9/11 attacks engineered by al-Qaida forces harboured by the Taliban, the Taliban led a long and violent insurgency.
“The Bush administration and the Obama administration both tried to get the words that were on the paper yesterday that the Taliban would break from al-Qaida publicly,” Pompeo said. “We got that. That’s important. Now, time will tell if they’ll live up to that commitment is our expectation. They have promised us they will do so and we’ll be able to see on the ground everything they do or choose not to do.”
The Afghan war, easily America’s longest, has been a stalemate for more than 18 years. More than 2,400 Americans have been killed and more than 20,000 wounded. As of October 2019, more than 43,000 civilians are estimated to have been killed.
Talks between Afghan government and Taliban groups will be “rocky and bumpy”, Pompeo said.
“No one is under any false illusion that this won’t be a difficult conversation. But that conversation for the first time in almost two decades will be among the Afghan people.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/mar/01/mike-pompeo-us-taliban-deal-afghan-rejection-clause
Secretary of State says deal signed on Saturday is historic and contains commitments by the Taliban to reduce violence
Martin Pengelly in New York and agencies
@MartinPengelly
Sun 1 Mar 2020 18.08 GMTLast modified on Mon 2 Mar 2020 04.10 GM
US Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar shake hands in Doha, Qatar. Photograph: EPA
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday brushed off the Afghan president’s rejection of a key clause of the US-Taliban deal he saw signed into effect on Saturday.
After Ashraf Ghani rejected a Taliban demand for the release of 5,000 prisoners which was included in the deal as a condition for further talks, Pompeo was asked if a major stumbling block had emerged only a day after the deal was signed.
He told CBS’s Face the Nation: “There have been prisoner releases from both sides before. We’ve managed to figure our path forward.”
Pompeo said the deal signed in Doha on Saturday, which will lead to US troop withdrawals, was historic and contained detailed commitments by the Taliban to reduce violence. He also expressed hope that talks would begin in the coming days between Afghanistan’s government and the Taliban, adding that Donald Trump would be actively engaged.
Pompeo gave no date for a Trump meeting with Taliban leaders, which the president promised at the White House on Saturday.
The deal faces criticism at home but in Kabul, Ghani told reporters: “The government of Afghanistan has made no commitment to free 5,000 Taliban prisoners.”
Under the accord, the US and the Taliban are committed to work expeditiously to release combat and political prisoners as a confidence-building measure, with the coordination and approval of all sides. The agreement calls for up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners to be released in exchange for up to 1,000 Afghan government captives by 10 March.
Ghani said it was “not in the authority of United States to decide” about the swap, because it was “only a facilitator”.
Speaking to CNN, the Afghan president said Trump had not asked for the release of the prisoners and the issue should be discussed as part of a comprehensive peace deal.
“The political consensus … that would be needed for such a major step does not exist today,” he said.
Ghani said key issues need to be discussed first, including the Taliban’s ties with Pakistan and other countries that had offered it sanctuary, its ties with what he called terrorist groups and drug cartels, and the place of Afghan security forces and its civil administration.
“The people of Afghanistan need to believe that we’ve gone from war to peace, and not that the agreement will be either a Trojan horse or the beginning of a much worse phase of conflict,” he said.
Pompeo said that though the Taliban “have an enormous amount of American blood on their hands”, they “have now made the break. They’ve said they will not permit terror to be thrust upon anyone, including the United States, from Afghanistan.”
Saturday’s accord was signed in Doha by US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban political chief Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, witnessed by Pompeo. Pompeo said he met “a senior Taliban negotiator”. Baradar met foreign ministers from Norway, Turkey and Uzbekistan and diplomats from Russia, Indonesia and other nations.
“The dignitaries who met Mullah Baradar expressed their commitments towards Afghanistan’s reconstruction and development … the US-Taliban agreement is historical,” said Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid.
In the US, Republicans in Congress expressed concerns about the logistics of the deal and trusting the Taliban, while Democrats demanded congressional involvement. In a Saturday briefing at the White House, Trump rejected all criticism and said he would meet Taliban leaders.
Aides to Ghani said Trump’s decision to meet the Taliban could pose a challenge to Afghanistan’s government at a time when the US troop withdrawal is imminent.
Washington is committed to reducing troops to 8,600 from 13,000 within 135 days of signing the deal. The US is also committed to work with allies to reduce the number of coalition forces, if the Taliban adheres to security guarantees and ceasefire. If so, a full withdrawal of all US and coalition forces will occur within 14 months.
The Taliban ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001 and imposed draconian restrictions on women’s rights and activities it deemed un-Islamic. After being ousted in a US-led invasion following the 9/11 attacks engineered by al-Qaida forces harboured by the Taliban, the Taliban led a long and violent insurgency.
“The Bush administration and the Obama administration both tried to get the words that were on the paper yesterday that the Taliban would break from al-Qaida publicly,” Pompeo said. “We got that. That’s important. Now, time will tell if they’ll live up to that commitment is our expectation. They have promised us they will do so and we’ll be able to see on the ground everything they do or choose not to do.”
The Afghan war, easily America’s longest, has been a stalemate for more than 18 years. More than 2,400 Americans have been killed and more than 20,000 wounded. As of October 2019, more than 43,000 civilians are estimated to have been killed.
Talks between Afghan government and Taliban groups will be “rocky and bumpy”, Pompeo said.
“No one is under any false illusion that this won’t be a difficult conversation. But that conversation for the first time in almost two decades will be among the Afghan people.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/mar/01/mike-pompeo-us-taliban-deal-afghan-rejection-clause
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Haris Ali2140
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Haris Ali2140
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MEA Jaishankar says 'real negotiations' still ahead in Afghanistan
Pooh-poohs Doha: "Was like finally seeing Pakeezah after 17 trailers"
Ajai Shukla | New Delhi Last Updated at March 2, 2020 15:35 IST
US-Taliban to sign agreement on Feb 29 after a week of reduced violence
Deal or no deal: Trump flip-flops keep all guessing ahead of India visit
Need for greater realism in policy: S Jaishankar
Letter to BS: The only way to get back Azad Kashmir is to snatch it from Pakistan
Trump's India visit: Indo-US energy relations set to touch a new high
Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar, addressing a conference in Delhi on Monday downplayed the agreement in Doha that commits the US to pull out from Afghanistan by May 2021. “What we saw at Doha was not a surprise. Everybody knew something like this was happening. It was almost like finally seeing Pakeezah after 17 trailers of the movie,” he said.
Pakistan played a major role in bringing the Taliban to the table. Key Taliban leaders, such as Mullah Abdul Baradar, who signed the pullout agreement, have spent years in Quetta under the control of the Pakistan government.
ALSO READ: US, Taliban sign historic peace deal for inclusive Afghanistan development
“To my mind, the real negotiations will start now. Then we will have to see whether many of the assumptions that we had, how cohesive are the various players, what do they do, what are their demands. Finally does Taliban join a democratic set up or does a democratic set up follow [and] adjusts to the Taliban,” said Jaishankar.
Hinting at a possible Indian role in the “intra-Afghan dialogue” the MEA stated: “There is a lot of interest in various countries, like the neighbours of Afghanistan and those who have interests there. Who plays what role will take a little while to work out.”
India enjoys significant leverage in Afghanistan due to its enduring relationships with numerous non-Pashtun groups, and traditional contacts with Pashtun groups, though not the Taliban. President Ashraf Ghani’s government in Kabul, which was not a party to the Doha pullout agreement, also has strong relations with New Delhi.
US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, left, and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban group's top political leader shack hands after signing a peace agreement between Taliban and U.S. officials in Doha, Qatar, Saturday, Feb 29, 2020. Photo: AP/PTI
India’s contacts with Pashtun leaders remained alive through the Taliban insurgency, thanks to a range of “small development projects,” that Indian development aid supported over the last 18 years in the Pashtun heartland of southern and eastern Afghanistan.
Jaishankar made clear New Delhi’s opposition to imposing the Taliban’s medieval worldview on an Afghanistan where there is now widespread acceptance of democracy, women’s rights, human rights and modern technology. The Doha pullout agreement does not bind the Taliban to protect these advances.
“I do believe that the last 18 years have brought about big changes [in Afghanistan]. I would remind people that this is not the Afghanistan of 2000-2001. To the US and to the West, our message has been that the achievements of the last 18 years, it is in global interest that those achievements are secured and protected,” said Jaishankar.
Alongside the “intra-Afghan dialogue” that is due to commence on March 10, Washington is to facilitate a Pakistan-Afghanistan dialogue aimed at border security and ending terror safe havens.
Describing these as “issues for which right now there are no clear answers,” the MEA stated: “You are watching that space, I am watching that space and that space is going to evolve.”
https://www.business-standard.com/a...till-ahead-in-afghanistan-120030200670_1.html
Pooh-poohs Doha: "Was like finally seeing Pakeezah after 17 trailers"
Ajai Shukla | New Delhi Last Updated at March 2, 2020 15:35 IST
US-Taliban to sign agreement on Feb 29 after a week of reduced violenceDeal or no deal: Trump flip-flops keep all guessing ahead of India visit
Need for greater realism in policy: S Jaishankar
Letter to BS: The only way to get back Azad Kashmir is to snatch it from Pakistan
Trump's India visit: Indo-US energy relations set to touch a new high
Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar, addressing a conference in Delhi on Monday downplayed the agreement in Doha that commits the US to pull out from Afghanistan by May 2021. “What we saw at Doha was not a surprise. Everybody knew something like this was happening. It was almost like finally seeing Pakeezah after 17 trailers of the movie,” he said.
Pakistan played a major role in bringing the Taliban to the table. Key Taliban leaders, such as Mullah Abdul Baradar, who signed the pullout agreement, have spent years in Quetta under the control of the Pakistan government.
ALSO READ: US, Taliban sign historic peace deal for inclusive Afghanistan development
“To my mind, the real negotiations will start now. Then we will have to see whether many of the assumptions that we had, how cohesive are the various players, what do they do, what are their demands. Finally does Taliban join a democratic set up or does a democratic set up follow [and] adjusts to the Taliban,” said Jaishankar.
Hinting at a possible Indian role in the “intra-Afghan dialogue” the MEA stated: “There is a lot of interest in various countries, like the neighbours of Afghanistan and those who have interests there. Who plays what role will take a little while to work out.”
India enjoys significant leverage in Afghanistan due to its enduring relationships with numerous non-Pashtun groups, and traditional contacts with Pashtun groups, though not the Taliban. President Ashraf Ghani’s government in Kabul, which was not a party to the Doha pullout agreement, also has strong relations with New Delhi.
US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, left, and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban group's top political leader shack hands after signing a peace agreement between Taliban and U.S. officials in Doha, Qatar, Saturday, Feb 29, 2020. Photo: AP/PTI
India’s contacts with Pashtun leaders remained alive through the Taliban insurgency, thanks to a range of “small development projects,” that Indian development aid supported over the last 18 years in the Pashtun heartland of southern and eastern Afghanistan.
Jaishankar made clear New Delhi’s opposition to imposing the Taliban’s medieval worldview on an Afghanistan where there is now widespread acceptance of democracy, women’s rights, human rights and modern technology. The Doha pullout agreement does not bind the Taliban to protect these advances.
“I do believe that the last 18 years have brought about big changes [in Afghanistan]. I would remind people that this is not the Afghanistan of 2000-2001. To the US and to the West, our message has been that the achievements of the last 18 years, it is in global interest that those achievements are secured and protected,” said Jaishankar.
Alongside the “intra-Afghan dialogue” that is due to commence on March 10, Washington is to facilitate a Pakistan-Afghanistan dialogue aimed at border security and ending terror safe havens.
Describing these as “issues for which right now there are no clear answers,” the MEA stated: “You are watching that space, I am watching that space and that space is going to evolve.”
https://www.business-standard.com/a...till-ahead-in-afghanistan-120030200670_1.html
CrazyZ
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Defense Secretary Gives Go-Ahead For U.S. Troops To Start Afghan Drawdown
March 2, 20202:39 PM ET
DAVID WELNA
Twitter
Defense Secretary Mark Esper (left) speaks as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Mark Milley listens during a briefing at the Pentagon on Monday.
Susan Walsh/AP
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper has given the go-ahead to begin a drawdown of American forces in Afghanistan, despite reports that the Taliban is ending a partial ceasefire and has resumed attacks on Afghan forces.
Esper says his troop withdrawal order to Army Gen. Scott Miller, the U.S. commander in Kabul, is in line with a U.S. peace deal with the Taliban, which calls for such a drawdown to begin within 10 days of its Saturday signing in Doha.
Under the terms of that agreement, 4,000 of the approximately 13,000 U.S. forces in Afghanistan would leave within 135 days and all American troops would be out within 14 months.
"My instruction to the commander was, 'Let's get moving, let's show our full faith and effort to do that,' " Esper told reporters Monday at the Pentagon. "I've said on many occasions that I'm comfortable we can still conduct all the missions we need to conduct at [a force level of] 8,600."
The Taliban's military commission, meanwhile, says that the "reduction in violence," or partial truce, that was in place for a week before the peace deal's signing is now over. Taliban fighters have been ordered to resume attacks on Afghan forces backing what the insurgents call Kabul's "puppet administration" — but to adhere to the agreement with the U.S. and refrain from targeting international forces.
Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley, who appeared with Esper, was asked about reports of a blast Monday in the eastern Afghan province of Khost that killed three civilians and wounded 11 more.
"We don't know exactly who did that yet," Milley replied. "I would caution everybody to think that there's going to be an absolute cessation of violence in Afghanistan, that is probably not going to happen. It's probably not going to go to zero."
The Taliban denies responsibility for the Khost explosion, which occurred at a soccer field.
The attack is one of a number of complications to emerge since Saturday's signing of the peace deal.
NPR's terms of use and privacy policy. NPR may share your name and email address with your NPR station. See Details. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
On Sunday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani rejected a provision in the U.S.-Taliban agreement that calls for the release of up to 5,000 imprisoned Taliban fighters and 1,000 Afghan forces being held by the Taliban. The swap was to take place prior to the start of talks between the Taliban and Afghan authorities due to begin by mid-March.
"We've got to work our way through that," Esper said of Ghani's refusal to free the Taliban prisoners before those negotiations begin. "Our commitment under the agreement was to enable, to facilitate that exchange of persons between the Taliban and the government of Afghanistan, and as I've said over and over, it's all conditions-based."
"This is going to be a long, windy, bumpy road," Esper said of the peace agreement's implementation. "There will be ups and downs, and we'll stop and start. That's gonna be the nature of this over the next days, weeks and months, and so I'm not going to get too excited about what happens at the moment."
https://www.npr.org/2020/03/02/8112...ahead-for-u-s-troops-to-start-afghan-drawdown
March 2, 20202:39 PM ET
DAVID WELNA
Defense Secretary Mark Esper (left) speaks as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Mark Milley listens during a briefing at the Pentagon on Monday.
Susan Walsh/AP
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper has given the go-ahead to begin a drawdown of American forces in Afghanistan, despite reports that the Taliban is ending a partial ceasefire and has resumed attacks on Afghan forces.
Esper says his troop withdrawal order to Army Gen. Scott Miller, the U.S. commander in Kabul, is in line with a U.S. peace deal with the Taliban, which calls for such a drawdown to begin within 10 days of its Saturday signing in Doha.
Under the terms of that agreement, 4,000 of the approximately 13,000 U.S. forces in Afghanistan would leave within 135 days and all American troops would be out within 14 months.
"My instruction to the commander was, 'Let's get moving, let's show our full faith and effort to do that,' " Esper told reporters Monday at the Pentagon. "I've said on many occasions that I'm comfortable we can still conduct all the missions we need to conduct at [a force level of] 8,600."
The Taliban's military commission, meanwhile, says that the "reduction in violence," or partial truce, that was in place for a week before the peace deal's signing is now over. Taliban fighters have been ordered to resume attacks on Afghan forces backing what the insurgents call Kabul's "puppet administration" — but to adhere to the agreement with the U.S. and refrain from targeting international forces.
Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley, who appeared with Esper, was asked about reports of a blast Monday in the eastern Afghan province of Khost that killed three civilians and wounded 11 more.
"We don't know exactly who did that yet," Milley replied. "I would caution everybody to think that there's going to be an absolute cessation of violence in Afghanistan, that is probably not going to happen. It's probably not going to go to zero."
The Taliban denies responsibility for the Khost explosion, which occurred at a soccer field.
The attack is one of a number of complications to emerge since Saturday's signing of the peace deal.
NPR's terms of use and privacy policy. NPR may share your name and email address with your NPR station. See Details. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
On Sunday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani rejected a provision in the U.S.-Taliban agreement that calls for the release of up to 5,000 imprisoned Taliban fighters and 1,000 Afghan forces being held by the Taliban. The swap was to take place prior to the start of talks between the Taliban and Afghan authorities due to begin by mid-March.
"We've got to work our way through that," Esper said of Ghani's refusal to free the Taliban prisoners before those negotiations begin. "Our commitment under the agreement was to enable, to facilitate that exchange of persons between the Taliban and the government of Afghanistan, and as I've said over and over, it's all conditions-based."
"This is going to be a long, windy, bumpy road," Esper said of the peace agreement's implementation. "There will be ups and downs, and we'll stop and start. That's gonna be the nature of this over the next days, weeks and months, and so I'm not going to get too excited about what happens at the moment."
https://www.npr.org/2020/03/02/8112...ahead-for-u-s-troops-to-start-afghan-drawdown
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Afghan Govt, Like Taliban, Has Conditions for Peace Talks: Ghani
The women of Afghanistan want their “legal and religious rights,” Ghani said.
President Ashraf Ghani at a gathering in eastern Nangarhar province on Tuesday responded to the Taliban’s demand for the release 5,000 prisoners ahead of the intra-Afghan talks, saying that the Afghan government also has its demands.
“There are two sides--they have conditions and we have conditions," Ghani said. During his speech, he also asked: “When are the Taliban going to leave Pakistan?”
The foreign organizations that have come to Afghanistan want peace, but the Taliban will cut its relationships with "Al-Qaeda but not with others.”
Just two days after the US-Taliban peace agreement was signed in Doha, a letter was seen by TOLOnews allegedly from the Taliban leadership to its members saying that the "RIV has ended" and that attacks on government forces should resume.
The letter also said that US forces should not be attacked.
Ghani, in response to the Taliban's resuming attacks on security forces, said: “You have made peace with the foreigners so what does your jihad mean now?”
“Killing Afghans is a crime,” Ghani added.
President Ghani, following Saturday's formal agreements, balked at a part of the US-Taliban deal mentioning the release of 5,000 Taliban prisoners held by the Afghan government as a "confidence-building" measure for intra-Afghan talks, saying the government has made no such commitment.
But Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, in a tweet on Monday, citing the language of the deal, said that the deal will not go ahead unless the 5,000 prisoners are released.
The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday in an interview on CBS News' Face the Nation was asked if what Ghani was saying was "wrong":
Pompeo answered: “(The document) says that we will work with all relevant parties to build on confidence, to create confidence-building measures amongst all of the parties, the Afghan government, non-Taliban, and others..We- we want this to be an inclusive process.”
Pompeo said that he hopes that in the coming days the intra-Afghan talks will start.
Also on Monday, US Defense Secretary Esper told reporters that the US drawdown should start within the next 10 days, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley, referring to the resumed attacks by Taliban, said the group is not "monolithic," suggesting that some groups were acting independently, and he also said that he did not expect violence to be reduced to "zero."
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan/afghan-govt-taliban-has-conditions-peace-talks-ghani
The women of Afghanistan want their “legal and religious rights,” Ghani said.
President Ashraf Ghani at a gathering in eastern Nangarhar province on Tuesday responded to the Taliban’s demand for the release 5,000 prisoners ahead of the intra-Afghan talks, saying that the Afghan government also has its demands.
“There are two sides--they have conditions and we have conditions," Ghani said. During his speech, he also asked: “When are the Taliban going to leave Pakistan?”
The foreign organizations that have come to Afghanistan want peace, but the Taliban will cut its relationships with "Al-Qaeda but not with others.”
Just two days after the US-Taliban peace agreement was signed in Doha, a letter was seen by TOLOnews allegedly from the Taliban leadership to its members saying that the "RIV has ended" and that attacks on government forces should resume.
The letter also said that US forces should not be attacked.
Ghani, in response to the Taliban's resuming attacks on security forces, said: “You have made peace with the foreigners so what does your jihad mean now?”
“Killing Afghans is a crime,” Ghani added.
President Ghani, following Saturday's formal agreements, balked at a part of the US-Taliban deal mentioning the release of 5,000 Taliban prisoners held by the Afghan government as a "confidence-building" measure for intra-Afghan talks, saying the government has made no such commitment.
But Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, in a tweet on Monday, citing the language of the deal, said that the deal will not go ahead unless the 5,000 prisoners are released.
The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday in an interview on CBS News' Face the Nation was asked if what Ghani was saying was "wrong":
Pompeo answered: “(The document) says that we will work with all relevant parties to build on confidence, to create confidence-building measures amongst all of the parties, the Afghan government, non-Taliban, and others..We- we want this to be an inclusive process.”
Pompeo said that he hopes that in the coming days the intra-Afghan talks will start.
Also on Monday, US Defense Secretary Esper told reporters that the US drawdown should start within the next 10 days, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley, referring to the resumed attacks by Taliban, said the group is not "monolithic," suggesting that some groups were acting independently, and he also said that he did not expect violence to be reduced to "zero."
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan/afghan-govt-taliban-has-conditions-peace-talks-ghani
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Haris Ali2140
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Haris Ali2140
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Aadi_1591
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why the **** do you want a terrorist woman back in our country. dont we already have enough terrorist running around in our streets?
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