Pakistan a candidate for mediation between Washington and Taliban

Nahla Abdel Moneim

The leaders of the Afghan Taliban movement met with the political leadership in Pakistan to discuss several files in the framework of preparing for the withdrawal of Washington’s military forces from Afghanistan in accordance with the historic agreement between them. The movement’s spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, announced on his Twitter account on December 16 that the head of the movement’s political bureau in the Qatari capital, Doha, Abdulghani Baradar, and his accompanying delegation met with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmoud Qureshi in Islamabad.

Mediation talks

Mujahid pointed out that Baradar and Qureshi discussed the current situation in Kabul, in addition to talks about the issue of refugees, education, health, trade exchange, and prisoner issues. In his meeting with the media, Qureshi said that his country wanted a lasting peace in Afghanistan and looked forward to a ceasefire and the reduction of violence to advance the peace process and complete the American consensus with the leaders of the movement.

Qureshi pointed out that the political delegation of the Taliban is keen on peace and stability in Afghanistan, pointing out that the ongoing talks between the Afghan parties are a historic opportunity to settle the conflict peacefully, calling on the international community to assume its responsibilities towards the reconstruction of Kabul.

The Pakistani minister announced that the next round of talks between the Afghan parties will be held on January 5, 2021, but their location has not yet been determined, and he stressed that his country played a decisive role in completing the historic agreement between Washington and the Taliban. It is mentioned that Pakistan was among the countries that strongly welcomed this agreement for interests that bind between the concerned parties.

Ceasefire

Washington had signed in February 2020 a peace agreement with the Taliban that includes the military withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan, with an internal Afghan dialogue that includes all parties, preceded by the complete release of detainees from the movement by the government and vice versa, as well as stopping cooperation between the Taliban and any other terrorist organizations, especially al-Qaeda, and the country not turning into a training ground for terrorist groups to plan and carry out attacks against American interests. But stopping violence remains a demand that has not been seriously accepted, as everyone agreed on its importance without the Taliban continuing their violent campaigns against the government’s security forces.

Pakistan’s entry came clearly on the mediation line between Washington and the Taliban in order to establish a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire after violent operations carried out by the movement in the country and the exit of opposition statements from within the American camp to what the movement is practicing despite the agreement. Parallel to the visit of the Taliban’s political delegation to Pakistan, he met with US Chief of Staff Mark Milley, who joined the movement’s negotiators on October 17 in Qatar in order to talk about internal negotiations, the completion of the peace process, and the need for a ceasefire.

But can Pakistan really play a real role in mediating between Washington and the movement, especially since this matter was previously raised during Prime Minister Imran Khan’s meeting with US President Donald Trump in July 2019 and discussed the matter and the possibility of Islamabad implementing a role in persuading the Taliban to peace with Washington, albeit the agreement was already signed in February. So will the next phase witness a ceasefire and commitment to the terms of peace and security calm for the sake of a handover process that benefits all parties concerned with shares in managing the country and common interests?