NEW YORK – Afghanistan’s National Security Advisor, Hamdullah Mohib, hasaccused the U.S. Special Envoy to his country, Zalmay Khalilzad, of”delegitimizing” the Kabul government by excluding it from peacenegotiations with the Taliban and actinglike a “viceroy.”
The comments made by Mohib about Khalilzad, the Afghan-born US diplomats,drew immediate and blistering rebuke from Washington, with the StateDepartment saying that his remarks “only serve to hinder” U.S.-Afghan tiesand the peace process.
“Under Secretary for Political Affairs David Hale summoned Afghan NationalSecurity Advisor Hamdullah Mohib today to reject the public commentsattributed to National Security Advisor Mohib criticizing the US approachto reconciliation,” State Department Deputy Spokesman Robert Palladino saidafter the meeting the between the two officials.
Hale reminded Mohib that Khalilzad represented Secretary of State MikePompeo, “and that attacks on Ambassador Khalilzad are attacks on thedepartment and only serve to hinder the bilateral relationship and thepeace process,” Palladino said.
At the same time, Hale “expressed our commitment to the Afghan government’sstability and full participation in the peace process,” Palladino said.
Khalilzad was born and raised in Afghanistan, but studied in the U.S. andhas worked in the U.S. government in various positions, including asambassador to Afghanistan, Iraq and the United Nations.
Speaking during a news conference at the Afghan Embassy in Washington,Mohib, a former ambassador to Washington, directed his attacks atKhalilzad’s conduct of peace talks with the Taliban.
The Kabul government has been excluded from the talks, held in Qatar,because the Taliban refuses direct negotiations with the Afghan government,insisting it is a puppet of the West and demanding that foreign troops pullout of the country before bilateral talks can begin.
U.S. officials have insisted they will not accept a peace deal with theTaliban without direct talks between the militant group and the Afghangovernment.
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Kabul in the past has expressed anger over being kept out of the talks, butpublic comments targeting the top U.S. negotiator are extremely rare.Officials were angered again this week when Khalilzad wrapped up the latestround of Taliban talks in Doha and returned directly to Washington withoutstopping to brief officials in Kabul.
“Knowing Ambassador Khalilzad’s history, his own personal history, he hasambitions in Afghanistan. He was wanting to run for president twice,” Mohibsaid.
“The perception in Afghanistan and people in government think that perhaps,perhaps all this talk is to create a caretaker government of which he willthen become the viceroy.”
“We think either Zal, Ambassador Khalilzad, doesn’t know how to negotiate[or] there may be other reasons behind what he’s doing,” Mohib added.
“The Taliban are in no mood to negotiate with the Afghan government, andthere is no reason for them to do so. They’re gaining. Their sole aim andexpectation and reasons in wanting to talk directly with the United Statesis to give themselves legitimacy.”
“The reason he is delegitimizing the Afghan government and weakening it,and at the same time elevating the Taliban can only have one approach. It’sdefinitely not for peace.”
