KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – A recently drafted U.S. draft agreement between the Taliban and the Afghan government is the best opportunity to speed up stalled peace talks between the country’s warring sides, the former said on Thursday. -Afghan President Hamid Karzai in an interview.
After decades of war and conflict, Afghans themselves are “in a hurry for peace” and eager to begin healing their nation, Karzai told The Associated Press.
Frustrated by the escalation of violence and the slow pace of negotiations that have been taking place in Qatar since last year, Washington presented a peace proposal to both sides of the protracted conflict. a copy of which the AP obtained earlier this week.
Karzai, considered a key player in future talks, told the PA that the US-proposed peace plan contains important provisions that could help bring peace to Afghanistan, with some revisions by both sides.
Despite Karzai’s optimistic assessment, Washington’s plan could face serious opposition from President Ashraf Ghani and the Taliban. Ghani opposes the idea of an interim government as part of a transitional period, seeing it as an attempt to diminish its power. Some of the Taliban practices, particularly on the public role of women and the demands of an Islamic system, may be contrary to the ideas proposed by the United States.
Karzai, who served as Afghan president from 2001 to 2014, has no formal role in the negotiations, but is seen as a major player. Washington peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has routinely consulted with him and has been instrumental in putting political opponents on the table.
Karzai said the U.S. proposal could lead to a war-weary nation in elections; it protects the rights of women and minorities, offers a way to achieve constitutional reform, and provides interim administration.
The United States has already tried to convey to negotiators the need for swift action.
In a letter to Ghani accompanying the proposal, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said it was urgent for Afghanistan’s warring parties to find a peaceful end to a war that has lasted nearly 20 years. and that it has cost the United States nearly a trillion dollars.
Karzai said Afghans themselves “are in a hurry for peace.”
“Peace is such a deep, deep and deeply desired desire by the Afghan people,” Karzai said. “You can’t imagine the rush we have to achieve peace for ourselves and the youngest.”
He expressed hope that the US proposal could serve as a catalyst for the two sides to make peace, perhaps even before May 1, the deadline for the final withdrawal of US troops under of an agreement reached between the Taliban and the United States a year ago. For now, talks in Qatar seem hopelessly stalled, and negotiators continue to discuss the agenda. Karzai did not delve into his cause for optimism.
Meanwhile, Washington continues to review the Taliban’s deal with the Trump administration, signed on February 29, 2020. Blinken said in his letter to Ghani that the withdrawal of U.S. troops on May 1 was still about the table.
Karzai said he was against the May 1 withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops, warning it would create chaos. He said it was in both Washington’s and Kabul’s interest to have a responsible exit.
“It is extremely important that the United States and the American allies and those who (have been involved) for the last twenty years in Afghanistan be responsible, that they do things that bring lasting peace,” he said. “Therefore, a responsible departure or a responsible stay in a peaceful Afghanistan are issues that we should consider very carefully.”
The Taliban have so far rejected the idea of international forces staying in Afghanistan after May 1, but Karzai said they could be convinced to accept a modified U.S. presence in a peaceful Afghanistan.
Karzai said the Afghanistan Reconciliation Council, of which he is a member, will meet on Sunday. The council, led by Abdullah Abdullah, will review the US proposal and respond with proposals for revisions in the coming days. The board leadership is the last arbiter over what the government will accept in a peace deal.
So far Ghani has been silent on Blinken’s letter and the US proposal. Its first vice president, Amrullah Saleh, said earlier this week that the president was not moved by the stern letter and that he has not shied away from demands that the Taliban join his government or hold elections for to a new government.
Ghani has been firm in opposing an interim government.
Karzai said that if the Ghani government could bring the groups at war together “we would support it,” but said it has not been able to and warned not to sacrifice an opportunity for peace to remain in power.
A number of international meetings are underway to start peace talks: Russia has invited Ghani, the Taliban, regional actors and the United States to a meeting in Moscow next week.
Blinken has proposed that the United Nations convene an international conference on Afghanistan in a few weeks, which will include foreign ministers from Russia, China, Iran, Pakistan and the United States.
There will also be a conference in Turkey, where Blinken has said he hopes to see a peace deal finalized.
Karzai said a peaceful Afghanistan is of interest to all its neighbors, particularly Pakistan, where the Taliban has its headquarters and with whom Afghanistan has had a troubled relationship, even when the Pakistan still hosts 1.5 million Afghan refugees.