ISLAMABAD – Talibanlinkpoliticalspokesman Suhail Shaheen Friday said Taliban will not take part inintra-Afghan dialogue if their prisoners are not released.
The proposed talks involving Afghan parties to the conflict, due to open onMarch 10, are central to the US-Taliban peace agreement.
Shaheen said if the provisions of the agreement are implemented andprisoners are released, Taliban are prepared for intra-Afghan negotiationson March 10. “Our negotiation team and agenda are ready and will go aheadas agreed. If the negotiations are delayed beyond the stated date, theresponsibility will rest with the others,” he tweeted.
Up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners and up to 1,000 captives of the other sideare to be released by March 10, the first day of intra-Afghan negotiations,under the Taliban-US peace agreement signed in Qatar on Feb 29.
President Ashraf Ghani has refused to free the Taliban prisoners andinsisted that it should not be a condition for the start of intra-Afghandialogue. He insists prisoners issue should be discussed during theintra-Afghan negotiations.
President Donald Trump in his telephonic conversation with political deputyand chief of political office of Taliban Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar saidSecretary of State Mike Pompeo will soon talk with President Ghani in orderto remove all the hurdles facing the intra-Afghan negotiations.
US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad arrived in Kabul on Wednesday for thefirst time after signing of the agreement with the Taliban to preparegrounds for the intra-Afghan negotiations. He is encouraging the Afghanleaders to agree on a consensus list of participants.
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Presidential spokesman Dawa Khan Meenapal had told Afghan media that thegovernment had prepared a list of 15 people but not yet made public namesof the participants. Meenapal said another team of heads of major politicalparties would be prepared which would take decisions in accordance with theintra-Afghan talks.
Chief Executive Dr Abdullah Abdullah also hinted at announcing his list ofdelegates to the dialogue with the Taliban.
In a series of tweets, Khalilzad Thursday said the US is committed tofacilitating prisoner exchange agreed in both US-Taliban agreement andUS-Afghanistan joint declaration. “We will support each side to releasesignificant numbers,” he said, as he discussed the need to decreaseviolence and the exchange of prisoners with Afghan leaders. He said the USis committed to expedite release of Taliban prisoners to take the peaceprocess forward.
Controversy over release of prisoners and Afghan government’s inability toannounce participants for the negotiations with the Taliban reflects thechallenges that can complicate and prolong dialogue among Afghan leaders.
