Pksecurity
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Though the world had pinned great hopes on the outcome of ongoing talk in Doha, Qatar where the Taliban were allowed to set up their mission, no headway is in sight till the filing of this report. This amounted to extending much needed legitimacy to Taliban to the discomfort of Karzai regime in Kabul. Karzai has been trying, from day one, to sabotage the process because he had no significant role in the talks and was effectively sidelined by both the parties.
But the negotiators on both sides were dragging feet and have failed to come to a consensus. The Americans reportedly wanted a presence in Afghanistan post-2014 in the form of troops and military bases which the Taliban leadership was not prepared to accept. To bring home their formidable strength to the US, the Taliban conducted a couple of successful raids and attacks in the heart of Kabul on the properties having immense symbolic value, the presidential palace and CIAs Kabul HQ.
What is it that the US wants to achieve from Doha Talks? Does it really want to facilitate reinstalling the same bunch of extremists it dethroned in 2001 at a cost of hundreds of billions of dollars? It seems that the US interest is confined to a smooth draw down of its troops and equipment and it wants to engage the Taliban till such time this objective is achieved. It plans to leave Afghanistan in the hands of Afghan security forces and the chaos that would follow.
This is evident from a US drone strike that killed at least 17 people in Pakistans restive border region early on Wednesday. Those killed reportedly belonged to Haqqani faction of Afghan Taliban who have the required capacity to challenge the Americans in Kabul. According to reports, two missiles hit a house near the main market in Miranshah, the provincial capital of the tribal region of North Waziristan. The region is considered a Taliban stronghold. Pakistan has lodged a strong protest with the US.
This attack has angered the Taliban as much as the Pakistani government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Pakistan, though not a direct party to the on-going talks, had persuaded the Taliban to the negotiation table. The Taliban are expected to toughen their stand and if the talks eventually fail, the Taliban mission in Doha will have to be closed down. Both parties are flexing muscles to claim their own pound of flesh but none of the parties can afford the talks to hit snags. But the attack clearly shows that the US is least concerned about the outcome of the latest drone strike and by extension, the outcome of Doha Talks. It would continue to engage the Taliban to squeeze a space for smooth withdrawal. Will the Taliban take the bait is a mystery which will unfold with the passage of time.
Will the drone strike sabotage peace process being negotiated in Doha?
But the negotiators on both sides were dragging feet and have failed to come to a consensus. The Americans reportedly wanted a presence in Afghanistan post-2014 in the form of troops and military bases which the Taliban leadership was not prepared to accept. To bring home their formidable strength to the US, the Taliban conducted a couple of successful raids and attacks in the heart of Kabul on the properties having immense symbolic value, the presidential palace and CIAs Kabul HQ.
What is it that the US wants to achieve from Doha Talks? Does it really want to facilitate reinstalling the same bunch of extremists it dethroned in 2001 at a cost of hundreds of billions of dollars? It seems that the US interest is confined to a smooth draw down of its troops and equipment and it wants to engage the Taliban till such time this objective is achieved. It plans to leave Afghanistan in the hands of Afghan security forces and the chaos that would follow.
This is evident from a US drone strike that killed at least 17 people in Pakistans restive border region early on Wednesday. Those killed reportedly belonged to Haqqani faction of Afghan Taliban who have the required capacity to challenge the Americans in Kabul. According to reports, two missiles hit a house near the main market in Miranshah, the provincial capital of the tribal region of North Waziristan. The region is considered a Taliban stronghold. Pakistan has lodged a strong protest with the US.
This attack has angered the Taliban as much as the Pakistani government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Pakistan, though not a direct party to the on-going talks, had persuaded the Taliban to the negotiation table. The Taliban are expected to toughen their stand and if the talks eventually fail, the Taliban mission in Doha will have to be closed down. Both parties are flexing muscles to claim their own pound of flesh but none of the parties can afford the talks to hit snags. But the attack clearly shows that the US is least concerned about the outcome of the latest drone strike and by extension, the outcome of Doha Talks. It would continue to engage the Taliban to squeeze a space for smooth withdrawal. Will the Taliban take the bait is a mystery which will unfold with the passage of time.
Will the drone strike sabotage peace process being negotiated in Doha?
