MOSCOW – Russia said Friday it backed the Taliban’s integration into afuture interim government in Afghanistan, as global powers ramped upefforts to secure a peace deal and end decades of war.
The foreign ministry’s comments come as a May deadline looms for the UnitedStates to end its two-decade military involvement in the ravaged country.Washington has encouraged the Afghan leadership to work towardsestablishing an “inclusive” government and proposed talks with the Talibanto secure a peace accord.
“The formation of an interim inclusive administration would be a logicalsolution to the problem of integrating the Taliban into the peacefulpolitical life of Afghanistan,” Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman MariaZakharova told reporters ahead of talks next week in Moscow.
But she added that the decision should be made “by the Afghans themselvesand should be resolved during negotiations on national reconciliation.”
US President Joe Biden is wrapping up a review on whether to stick to anagreement with the Taliban negotiated by his predecessor Donald Trump whowanted to pull out the final US troops from Afghanistan by May. Theso-called Doha Accord signed in the Qatari capital last year underscoredTrump’s desire to end long-running US military involvement.
But the Biden administration has signalled that it wants to take a hardlook at Trump’s deal and its repercussions for Afghanistan and regionalstability. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote a letter to Afghanleaders encouraging them to consider a “new, inclusive government.” He alsoproposed that talks take place within weeks in Turkey to seal acomprehensive peace deal with the Taliban.
No speedy breakthrough
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut said Friday that Ankara was ready to hostsuch a meeting in April.
“Both the Taliban and the negotiation delegation, meaning the governmentside, had asked us to host such a meeting before,” the Anadolu state newsagency quoted Cavusoglu as saying.
“We will do this (meeting) in coordination with brotherly Qatar,” he addedin reference to a separate rounds of talks staged in Doha.
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The scheduled US withdrawal is being complicated by a new surge in fightingand concern that a speedy exit may only unleash further chaos.
The 2020 Doha Accord says the Taliban promises not to allow Afghanterritory to be used by terrorists after the US withdrawal.
Blinken’s letter to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said bluntly thatWashington feared the “security situation will worsen and the Taliban couldmake rapid territorial gains” if the United States suddenly withdrew.Blinken proposed a 90-day reduction in violence that would avoid theTaliban’s annual bloody spring offensive.
He added that Washington was asking the United Nations to convene a meetingof foreign ministers from Afghanistan’s neighbours on ensuring futurestability.
But the Afghan leadership has responded to Blinken’s letter with extremecaution. Afghan Vice President Amrullah Saleh said the country’s fate couldnot be decided by “20 people in a room.”
Cavusoglu also signalled that he did not necessarily expect the Istanbulmeeting to produce an immediate breakthrough. “Our aim is to pursuenegotiations between the Taliban and the government that are focused on aresult,” the Anadolu state news agency quoted him as saying. “Maybe aceasefire cannot be obtained but it is a continuing process,” he said. “Weare giving a message to the Taliban. We are saying them to end the attacks.We are telling them there can be no real negotiations while the attackscontinue.”
Moscow is due to host talks next week between members of the Afghangovernment and the Taliban, the Kremlin’s latest effort to cement its roleas a broker in the conflict, decades after the Soviet occupation ofAfghanistan ended.
