The US departure without putting up a credible governance structure inAfghanistan may descend the war-torn country into a new civil warlink, according to local experts.
Speaking at a webinar “US withdrawal from Afghanistan: Threats to regionalpeace, within and without”, organized by the Institute of Policy Studies(IPS), an Islamabad-based think tank, on Wednesday, the experts urgedWashington not to repeat the mistake, similar to the one happened after thewithdrawal of Soviet troops in 1989, which triggered a years-long bloodshedbetween Mujahideen groups in the country.
Brig. (Retd) Said Nazir, an Islamabad-based geostrategic analyst, feared afurther rise in an already intense power struggle between the Taliban andthe Kabul government after the completion of the ongoing pullout process,which would have “direct consequences” for neighboring Pakistan.
Washington, he opined, would act as a mere distant spectator of the “mess”if it leaves without putting up a power-sharing structure in Kabul.
Commenting on the much-debated proposal of allowing Washington to carry outits counter-terrorism operations from Pakistani soil after the pullout, hecautioned the move will allow anti-state elements, including Daesh and theTehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, to regroup labeling Pakistan a US proxy.
Syed Abrar Hussain, Pakistan’s former ambassador to Afghanistan, was of theview that regional countries do not want the Taliban to rule Afghanistanalone as they fear it would bring about militancy and violence in theregion. Hence, he suggested, an intra-Afghan dialogue before the USdeparture is needed for sustainable peace.
Jumma Khan Sufi, an author and expert on Afghan affairs, said the UK istrying to bring Pakistan and Afghanistan closer in a bid to solve bilateralissues that have prevailed between the neighbors for a long time.
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He contended that the UK facilitated the recent meeting between Pakistan’sArmy Chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.
He stressed that Pakistan needs to press the regional power brokers toensure Afghanistan recognizes the existing Pak-Afghan border for along-term settlement.
Talking about his recent visit to Afghanistan, Hasan Khan, a Peshawar-basedanalyst, said the Afghan people generally like Pakistan and do not despiseit as is often depicted in media, especially social media. Nonetheless, theAfghans are not happy with either the Taliban or the Kabul government andthink that the US has betrayed Afghanistan once again by leaving thecountry in a mess.
Khalid Rahman, the executive director of the IPS, warned of growingviolence in Afghanistan amidst the US withdrawal, observing that thecircumstances inside Afghanistan do not augur well for peace and ratheroffer a perfect recipe for a civil warlink.
He urged all stakeholders, especially internal power players, to reach anegotiated agreement before the US departure “for good”. – Anadolu Agency