Afghanistan peace talks seek to end decades of war

Doha: The Taliban and the Afghan government have begun historic peace talks in Qatar, aimed at shaping a power-sharing government that would end decades of war that have consumed Afghanistan and left millions dead and displaced.

But as the Qatar talks begin, against the backdrop of an American troop pullout and grievous violence against Afghan officials and civilians, some critics of the process argued that the Taliban insurgency was still, in essence, holding a gun to the government's head.

The peace talks opened on Saturday morning in Doha, the Qatari capital, with formal ceremonies held under tight security and strict coronavirus restrictions. The negotiations will be complicated at every turn by the threat of continued insurgent assaults, deep political divisions after a disputed election, decades of loss and grievance, and by foreign powers pulling Afghan factions in opposing directions.

Still, the fact that delegations from the two sides are finally coming to the table, after repeated delays, offers the nation a rare opportunity in its recent history: finding a formula of lasting coexistence before the withdrawal of another foreign military creates a vacuum.

The Taliban's deputy leader, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, said the insurgents would participate in the talks "with full sincerity," and he urged both sides to exercise calm and patience.

Baradar offered little detail about the Taliban's vision for a future Afghanistan, except in broad strokes. But many on the Afghan negotiating team said that his tone — in contrast to previous Taliban speeches in public forums — was measured and offered hope.

"We seek an Afghanistan that is independent, sovereign, united, developed and free — an Afghanistan with an Islamic system in which all people of the nation can participate without discrimination and live harmoniously with each other in an atmosphere of brotherhood," he said.

Before the talks began, General Austin S. Miller, the commander of the US and NATO forces in Afghanistan, said that international forces would continue to support the Afghan forces on the battlefield.

But in Doha, as hundreds of diplomats and dignitaries took their seats, Miller walked in uniform across the hall to the Taliban side and offered greetings — an image that made clear his direct war with the Taliban was largely over.

The New York Times