US Announces Deal To End War in Afghanistan Is in Place
In this Nov. 13, 2019, file photo, Afghan security personnel gather at the site of a car bomb attack in Kabul, Afghanistan. (Rahmat Gul / AP Photo)
By AP Reports
Published February 21, 2020 at 4:48am
The countdown to the signing of a peace agreement between the Taliban and the United States on Feb. 29 to end the 18 years of war in Afghanistan will begin at midnight Friday, when a seven-day “reduction of violence” promised by the Taliban goes into effect, an Afghan official said.
After that week-long period, the long-sought peace agreement between the U.S. and the Taliban will be signed in Doha, Qatar, paving the way for a withdrawal of U.S. troops and intra-Afghan negotiations, a senior U.S. State Department official said.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the deal and its details.
The period of reduced violence is due to start at midnight Friday local time (19:30 GMT, 2:30 p.m. EST), according to the Afghan official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.
The Taliban have maintained a political office in Doha in recent years, following the 2001 U.S.-led invasion that toppled their regime, which had harbored al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, in Afghanistan.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the peace agreement will lead to an eventual permanent cease-fire.
The deal also envisions guarantees from the Taliban that Afghanistan will not be used to attack the U.S. or its allies, and provides for the phased withdrawal of American and other foreign forces from the country over 18 months.
“We are preparing for the signing to take place on Feb. 29,” Pompeo said in a statement. “Intra-Afghan negotiations will start soon thereafter and will build on this fundamental step to deliver a comprehensive and permanent cease-fire and the future political road map for Afghanistan."
But that road is fraught with difficulties.
“The only way to achieve a sustainable peace in Afghanistan is for Afghans to come together and agree on the way forward,” Pompeo said in his statement.
It’s still not clear who will represent Kabul for the intra-Afghan talks, considered a key pillar in finding a lasting peace.
Afghanistan’s election commission earlier this week declared President Ashraf Ghani the winner of the September 2019 presidential election, but his rivals quickly denounced the outcome.
The Taliban have refused to talk to Ghani’s government and also denounced the results of the balloting, saying they will talk to government representatives but only as ordinary Afghans.
Pompeo’s statement did not say who would represent Kabul, only that “intra-Afghan negotiations will start soon” after the signing in Doha “and will build on this fundamental step to deliver a comprehensive and permanent cease-fire and the future political road map for Afghanistan.”
Poster Comment:
What about the Opium Poppy production? Just asking.