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Afghan delegation travels to Pakistan for Taliban talks Afghan delegation travels to Pakistan for Taliban talks
(about 2 hours later)
An Afghan peace delegation arrived in the Pakistani capital on Tuesday for what officials described as “negotiations with the Taliban” even as Kabul was hit by two separate suicide attacks. Pakistan’s capital city became the venue for direct talks between the Taliban and a senior member of the Afghan government on Tuesday, raising hopes of a political breakthrough even as Kabul was hit by two separate suicide attacks.
Few details were made public save for a Twitter post from the office of Afghan president Ashraf Ghani saying the group comprised members of the High Peace Council, a body set up in five years ago to negotiate with the Taliban. Few details were made public about the first known talks to be held between the two sides in the hugely symbolic location of Islamabad. A tweet from the office of the Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, said members of the officially sanctioned high peace council had gone for “negotiations with the Taliban”. Pakistan’s foreign office spokesman said he knew nothing about the talks.
A delegation from the High Peace Council of Afghanistan has traveled to Pakistan for negotiations with the Taliban.A delegation from the High Peace Council of Afghanistan has traveled to Pakistan for negotiations with the Taliban.
While Pakistan’s foreign office spokesman said he knew nothing about the talks, an intelligence official said discussions between the two sides would take place over iftar – the sunset meal that for Muslims marks the end of a day’s fast during the month of Ramadan. Intelligence officials said the two sides would break the ice over iftar, the sunset meal that for Muslims marks the end of a day’s fast during the month of Ramadan. Formal talks would then take place on Wednesday at an unnamed location, with Chinese diplomats invited to attend as observers, one official said.
The evening talks were set to take place after another day of bloodshed in Kabul where a suicide car bomber targeted a NATO vehicle, injuring three people. Later in the day one guard was killed at an office of the Afghan spy agency when three insurgents attempted to storm the building. China is increasingly worried about instability and Islamist insurgency on its southwest flank and has been playing a growing role in efforts to broker a settlement between the Afghan government and the Taliban. A meeting between Afghan and Taliban officials took places under Chinese auspices in the western city of Urumqi in May.
The latest attacks of an already bloody summer highlighted the urgency with which President Ghani has been pursuing efforts to open talks with the Taliban. The Pakistani intelligence official said there was a chance that US officials would also attend some of the Islamabad meetings. The official said there were three men on the Taliban team, but refused to reveal their names. A Taliban spokesman said he had no information about the talks and was unable to comment.
Although most observers agree only a political settlement can reduce the violence Ghani has been severely criticised at home for his attempts to enlist the support of Pakistan to help broker talks with the Taliban as many Afghans hold the country responsible for backing the Taliban in the first place. Although the high peace council is meant to operate independently of the government, the four-man Afghan team included the deputy foreign minister, Hekmat Karzai, a nephew of the former president Hamid Karzai, who has been a fierce critic of Ghani’s efforts to improve relations with Pakistan.
That Tuesday’s talks were due to be held in Islamabad could help Ghani answer some of his domestic critics who have argued his tilt towards Pakistan has failed to produce results. Pakistan’s prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, said the talks were “a major breakthrough”. During a visit to Norway, he said: “I hope there will be a positive outcome which will certainly be very helpful for peace and stability in Afghanistan.”
Ghani’s government was particularly criticised for signing an intelligence sharing agreement with Pakistan’s spy agency, which is especially hated in Afghanistan. In Kabul, a suicide car bomber targeted a Nato vehicle, injuring three people. Later, a guard was killed at an office of the Afghan spy agency when three insurgents attempted to storm the building.
A Pakistani official said the Afghan delegation included deputy foreign minister Hekmat Karzai, a nephew of former president Hamid Karzai who has become a fierce behind the scenes critic of Ghani’s efforts to improve relations with Pakistan. Most observers agree that only a political settlement can significantly reduce the violence, but Ghani has been severely criticised at home for his attempts to enlist the help of Pakistan to bring the Taliban to the peace table.
There were no details about who comprised the Taliban delegation. Many Afghans hold Pakistan responsible for backing the Taliban in the first place and say Ghani’s concessions have failed to win results. Ghani’s government was particularly criticised for signing an intelligence-sharing agreement with Pakistan’s spy agency, which is widely hated in Afghanistan.
Afghan government officials have met members of the Taliban before but the movement has never acknowledged them as anything more than informal contacts. Hasan Askari Rizvi, a veteran Pakistani security analyst, said the fact the discussions were being held in Islamabad would help Ghani deal with his furious domestic critics.
After Pakistan’s national security adviser revealed last month that the two sides had held talks in the Chinese city of Urumqi the Taliban’s spokesman insisted those involved had not been authorised to speak on behalf of the movement. “Ghani is under a lot of pressure from the Afghan parliament and the Afghan bureaucracy who are all against Pakistan,” he said. “The fact talks are being held in Islamabad will enable him to say the Pakistanis are trying to help.”
In recent weeks Pakistan itself has warned of the limits of any negotiation given the Taliban is split, with field commanders increasingly unwilling to accept orders from a leadership based outside Afghanistan. Afghan officials have met members of the Taliban in the past but the movement has never acknowledged them as anything more than informal contacts. After Pakistan’s national security adviser revealed details of the Urumqi talks, the Taliban’s spokesman insisted no one involved had been authorised to speak on behalf of the movement.
Further complicating any potential peace process is the rise of a wing of Islamic State in Afghanistna which has succeeded in attracting the support of disillusioned Taliban fighters. In recent weeks Pakistan has warned of the limits of any negotiation given that the Taliban is increasingly split, with field commanders unwilling to accept orders from a leadership based outside Afghanistan.
By being seen to talk to the Afghan government the Taliban could risk losing more men to Islamic State, some analysts have warned. Further complicating any potential peace process is the rise of an offshoot of Islamic State in Afghanistan, which has succeeded in attracting the support of disillusioned Taliban fighters.
Recent media reports have suggested that even the Islamist warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a veteran of campaigns against Soviet troops in the 1980s and the more recent Nato intervention, has renounced the Taliban leader Mullah Omar in favour of Islamic State.
Rizvi said the pressure from rival militant groups could help push the Taliban towards a deal. “Already the Taliban is divided between fighting and talking. Those who believe in fighting will defect, which may force some groups to talk and go for an accommodation,” he said.