KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – A recently floated US project for an agreement between the Taliban and the Afghan government is the best chance to speed up stalled peace talks between the country’s warring parties, former Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on Thursday.
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 in Qatar last year, Washington has put forward a peace proposal to both sides in the protracted conflict. a copy that 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, the Washington 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, viewing it as an attempt to diminish its power. Some Taliban practices, especially regarding the public role of women and calls for 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. He is currently being consulted by Washington peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and helping bring political opponents to the table.
Karzai said the US proposal could keep a war-weary nation in the election; it protects the rights of women and minorities, provides a way to carry out constitutional reform and provides an interim administration.
The US has already tried to convey the need for swift action to negotiators.
In a letter to Ghani accompanying the proposal, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said it was urgent for the warring parties in Afghanistan to find a peaceful end to a war that lasted nearly 20 years and that cost the US nearly $ 1 trillion.
Karzai said the Afghans themselves were “in a hurry for peace.”
“Peace is such a deep, deep, deeply desired desire of the Afghan people,” Karzai said. “You can’t imagine how hurried we are to reach peace for ourselves and the youngest.”
He expressed hope that the US proposal could serve as a catalyst for both sides to make peace, perhaps even before May 1 – the deadline for a final withdrawal of US troops under a US-Taliban agreement reached a year ago. . For now, talks in Qatar appear hopelessly interrupted, with negotiators still arguing over the agenda. Karzai did not explain the cause of his optimism.
Meanwhile, Washington is still reviewing the Taliban deal with the Trump administration, signed on February 29, 2020. Blinken said in a letter to Ghani that the withdrawal of US troops until May 1 is still on the table.
Karzai said he was against the withdrawal of US and NATO troops on May 1, warning that it would create chaos. He said it was in the interest of both Washington and Kabul to have a responsible way out.
“It is extremely important that the US and its US allies and those (who have been) involved in Afghanistan for the last 20 years be responsible, to do things that will bring lasting peace,” he said. “So a responsible exit or a responsible stay in a peaceful Afghanistan are both aspects that we should consider very carefully.”
The Taliban have so far rejected the idea of international forces remaining in Afghanistan after May 1, but Karzai said they could be persuaded to accept a modified US presence in a peaceful Afghanistan.
Karzai said the Afghanistan National 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 revision in the coming days. The leadership of the council is the final arbiter of what the government will accept in a peace agreement.
Ghani has so far been silent on Blinken’s letter and the US proposal. Its first vice president, Amrullah Saleh, said earlier this week that the president had been shaken by the stern letter and had not given up demands that the Taliban either join his government or hold elections for a new government.
Ghani was firmly opposed to an interim government.
Karzai said that if Ghani’s government could bring the groups into battle together, “we would support him,” but said he had failed and warned against sacrificing an opportunity for peace to keep power.
A number of international assemblies are working to start peace talks – Russia has invited Ghani, the Taliban, regional players 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, including foreign ministers from Russia, China, Iran, Pakistan and the United States.
A conference will also be held in Turkey, where Blinken said he expects a peace agreement to be finalized.
Karzai said a peaceful Afghanistan is of interest to all its neighbors, especially Pakistan, where the Taliban leadership is headquartered and with which Afghanistan has had a troubled relationship even though Pakistan is still hosting 1.5 million Afghan refugees.