ISLAMABAD – Afghan officials say the government has decided to hold thesecond round of peace negotiations with the Taliban in Doha, the same placewhere the first round was held.
Faridoon Khawzoon, a spokesman for the Afghanistan High Council forNational Reconciliation, the body responsible for overseeing thenegotiations, said the decision was taken due to COVID-19-related travelrestrictions.
Several countries had been in the running to host the peace negotiations,including Norway and Germany.
Doha was also the venue for negotiations between the United States and theTaliban that led to the signing of a deal between the two countries inFebruary 2020. The Taliban have maintained an unofficial political officein Doha for years.
Khawzoon said the leadership committee of the AHCNR has authorized theAfghan government’s team to negotiate the agenda of the talks with theTaliban.
In the first round, the two sides agreed on the code of conduct to guidethe negotiations. Before taking a three-week break, the two sides sharedagenda items. Talks are expected to resume on January 5, 2021.
The office of President Ashraf Ghani also confirmed Doha as the venue forthe second round to allow the negotiations to restart on time. Ghani hadsuggested that the second round and subsequent negotiations be held inAfghanistan.
The Taliban do not recognize Ghani’s government as legitimate and rejectedthat suggestion.
Najia Anwari, spokeswoman for the Ministry of Peace Affairs, said theAfghan team was continuing its consultations with different segments of theAfghan society, including politicians and civil society activists.
The second round of talks will start at a time when calls for a cease-fireor a significant reduction in violence have gained momentum.
Taliban-driven violence against Afghan security forces has increased to a10-year high after the militant group signed its deal with the UnitedStates.
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The increase in violence has been an obstacle in negotiations with theAfghan government. The international community and regional countries alikehave been calling for a reduction in violence.
Michael Kugelman, Asia program deputy director at the Wilson Center, saidthe Taliban want to use violence as a negotiation tactic.
“In this sense, the Taliban want to hold out and get more concessions fromthe other side before it agrees to focus on the violence issue,” he toldVOA.
Some analysts believe the Taliban would be reluctant to give up violence,which is the most potent negotiation tool they command.
“The only leverage they have is the use of violence,” Rick Olson, formerU.S. special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, told VOA. “Theyare dreadfully unpopular politically.”
The Taliban’s reluctance to give up violence is also linked to theirorganizational structure, said Andrew Watkins, senior analyst forAfghanistan, at the International Crisis Group.
“The Taliban are an insurgency, a machine that runs on fighting. Oncefighting stops, it might be hard to start up the machine again,” he said toVOA.
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