KABUL: A big setback has been reported for intra Afghanistan crucial peacetalks in Qatar.
The US envoy for peace in Afghanistan expressed disappointment on Fridayafter the collapse of a planned meeting between the Taliban and a group ofAfghan politicians in Qatar that exposed some of the deep divisionshampering efforts to end the war.
A 250-strong delegation of Afghan politicians and civil society figures hadbeen due to meet Taliban officials in Doha at the weekend. The event wasabruptly cancelled on Thursday amid arguments over the size and status ofthe group, which included some government officials attending in a personalcapacity.
“I’m disappointed Qatar’s intra-Afghan initiative has been delayed,” ZalmayKhalilzad, the US special representative for Afghan reconciliation, said onTwitter.
“I urge all sides to seize the moment and put things back on track byagreeing to a participant list that speaks for all Afghans.”
The collapse of the meeting before it had even started, described as a“fiasco” by one senior Western official, laid bare the tensions that havehampered moves towards opening formal peace negotiations.