KABUL – *The Taliban announced on Monday night that the group is readyfor talks with the United States and called on US officials “to talkdirectly to the Political Office of Islamic Emirate (in Qatar) regarding apeaceful solution to the Afghan quandary.”*
Referring to the US Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central AsiaAlice Wells’ recent statement that the US has kept the doors of dialogueopen for the Taliban, the group said “it would help in finding a solutionif America accepts the legitimate demands of the Afghan people and forwardits own concerns and requests for discussion to the Islamic Emirate througha peaceful channel.”
The Taliban also said in the statement that the group made it clear to theUS in its recent letter that “war is not our choice, rather it has beenimposed upon us. For ending the occupation, we want a peaceful resolutionto the Afghan issue.”
The statement noted that “it must now be established by America and herallies that the Afghan issue cannot be solved militarily.
“America must henceforth focus on a peaceful strategy for Afghanistaninstead of war. Military strategies which have repeatedly been tested inAfghanistan over the past seventeen years will only intensify and prolongthe war. And this is not in the interest of anyone.”
The statement comes days after Kabul started discussions with the Qatargovernment to close the Taliban’s office in Doha as it has had “no positiveconsequence in terms of facilitating the peace talks with the group inAfghanistan”, a senior Afghan government official said.
There is no need to keep the office open, said Mohammad Hanif Atmar, theNational Security Advisor to President Ashraf Ghani, last week.
He made the remarks in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, a daily newspaperin the Middle East.
“The (Taliban’s) Qatar office had no benefit for us even after seven years.We are discussing with Qatar government that this office had no positiveresult in the peace process and it is better to close it,” Atmar said inthe interview.
“The aim behind opening of this office was to start official peacenegotiations with the Taliban from the address, but so far no officialnegotiation from the office has been started with government. Even a singlestep has not been taken forward in the peace process through thisoffice,” said Qadir Shah, a spokesman for Atmar’s office last week.
Mohammad Akram Khpalwak, an advisor to the president and head secretary ofHigh Peace Council last week said in Kabul at a National Consultative PeaceConference with tribal and Jihadi elders and provincial councilrepresentatives, that the Taliban should approach Afghans to end the warinstead of sending letters to the United States.
“The Taliban should have approached Afghans to end current violence inAfghanistan instead of sending letters to the US,” said Khpalwak.
Earlier this month the Taliban called on the American people to putpressure on US President Donald Trump to change his war policy inAfghanistan and pursue peace.
The letter, which was addressed to “the American people”, stated that theUS invaded Afghanistan for three goals: “Establishing security byeliminating the so-called terrorists inside Afghanistan, restoring law andorder by establishing a legal government and eradicating narcotics”.
The letter also stated that the US and its allies have failed to achievethese goals.
The letter mentioned that the continuance of war and remaining of US forcesin Afghanistan was not in favor of anyone and that this “threatens thestability of the world”.
“Your president and his military and political officials following his warpolicies still speak the language of war in Afghanistan,” the letter read.
The Taliban asked the American people that if they want peaceful dialoguewith Afghans specifically and with the world generally, then they need tomake their president (Donald Trump) and the “war-mongering congressmen andPentagon officials understand this reality and compel them to adopt arational policy towards Afghanistan”.