The Afghan Taliban on Tuesday expressed its willingness to hold dialogue with US with a view to initiate a process to bring peace and stability in the war-torn country. In a statement posted late on Monday, the Taliban said it “calls on American officials to talk directly to the Political Office of Islamic Emirate regarding a peaceful solution to the Afghan quandary”, using its official name.
The statement came on the heels of Kabul Process Conference (KPC), which is set to begin on Wednesday. The KPC, a gathering of 23 nations including the EU, UN and NATO is intended to discuss security and political issues in the country.
“At the Kabul Process meeting I will recommend a comprehensive plan to the Taliban and Pakistan, but we are no longer a hostage, we have good intention for peace but it does not mean weakness”, said Ashraf Ghani the president of Afghanistan. However, political and defense analysts believe that the role of countries attending the meeting is crucial to coordinate the views of regional countries regarding peace and stability in Afghanistan. So far the US and allied forces deployed in Afghanistan had exclusively relied on its military muscle to defeat Taliban and other militants groups despite the fact that many attempts were made to initiate an inclusive dialogue for a peaceful settlement of Afghan problem. Pertinently, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and other leaders have repeatedly offered peace talks with the Taliban. However, the group has categorically rejected the offer, saying there will be no talks until foreign troops leave the country. The recent dialogue offer to US by Taliban is seen as a major shift in its policy and a significant step towards right direction. As the KPC set to discuss the counter-terrorism and conflict resolution strategies, it is imperative that stakeholders should take into account the ground reality that there was no military solution to the problem.
Instead of repeating and testing the same old military strategies there is a dire need to revisit the wisdom and to adopt a comprehensive mechanism of rapprochement and reconciliation with all legitimate indigenous stakeholders so as to bring an end to the long drawn conflict and prolonged war that has brought death destruction for the people of the troubled region. At the domestic level, a lot depends upon how effectively the Afghan government headed by Ashraf Ghani pursues the much trumpeted peace agenda. Rather than relying solely on its foreign friends the so-called elected leadership of Afghanistan should demonstrate wisdom and courage to bring warring groups on the negotiating table and particularly the government should encourage those who are ready to be part of dialogue process as dialogue and political reconciliation is the only way to get out of the mess.
