The Qatari government has announced that the inter-Afghan peace talks are postponed indefinitely, after the first round of talks, intended to begin earlier this week, never got off the ground.
This is a big blow to a process that the US and the Taliban have been
setting out for months. The Afghan government has been a drag on the
process before, but this is a real move that could upset those efforts.
The problem this time is that the Afghan government appointed a 250-member delegation,
and then never bothered to send them. The presidential palace stopped
the departure at the airport, but declined to explain why.
There are some indications that President Ghani was irked that a lot of
the participants at the talks weren’t his direct allies, and that the
delegation included a lot of other political factions in Afghanistan.
Guess the Taliban need to forget negotiations and just kill all the Quislings outright.
I think that Afghanistan sees no real reason to make concessions – they seem to realize that they just need to bleed America some more and America will leave empty-handed
This is the government though. The government probably likes the US, wants more money. I could be mistaken of course.
Any patriotic Afghan should want the US forces to leave. True, there are money-grubbers in all societies who will sell out their country for personal gain – we have millions of them ourselves
Is Afghan nationalism a significant force there though? Are Afghans united even against the US?
The Taliban didn’t control the whole before the US went in. I just assumed many in Afghanistan also side with the US, because they prefer the US over the Taliban. It seemed drugs and pederasty grew after the US went in, because the Taliban had banned both. And I’ve seen somewhere, maybe here, a defence produced that the Afghans are more like the Greeks, which I assumed to be a reference to pederasty.
I want to say the Pashtuns/Taliban are more aligned with Pakistan, and other Afghans are more aligned with Iran? But I wouldn’t really know.
Lurchopan, I am no expert on Afghan culture either but I have been in Muslim countries and I have been in the US military, and I am sure that having a bunch of drunk, loud GIs constantly looking for sex and shooting civilians in their country, does not endear them to the modest Muslims.
I would be willing to change my mind if only someone would only give me one good reason as to why we are there
Drugs and some geostrategic positioning might be partly why, but part of it I just suspect is that to leave would mean to admit defeat. Trump’s generals probably told him they’re close to winning, or some such.
It’s a shame Trump is so indecisive, though I guess being President is a humbling experience. I’d order all troops home, to Hell with the “concerns” of the empire.
A forced democratic government by the U.S. on a country that’s tribal and ungovernable. Your tax dollars at work.
What a surprise!!!!!! Who wants peace? Not the US and its war mongering murderous agents.
The US is not held hostage here, except to our self-imposed ground rules. If the US made it clear to the alleged Afghan government that we will unilaterally completely withdraw in 1 month unless they step up to the peace talks, the gridlock would be over.
Real shocker. There are many things Trump had to cough up in irder to put an end to “investigation”. Now, all US trouos woukd staywhere they are, however wobbly,until elections. And the two ruling corporations are already auditioning their actors for presidential elections. Democrats are partnering with the faux conservative Fox to have Bernie pitch no wars. Suuuure. Getting back a mainstream party actor to steal Trump’s winning points — and hopefully get back into White House. At which point do nit count in any media to cry iver White House excess. Both corporations were ready to criwn Orincess Hillary and failed. This time, their vote harvesting will have to become mire solhisticated. Until parties cease to be profit generating corporations —,there is no chance for change. Nit only Afghanistan but North Korea has been put on hold.
Can we please, pretty please stop imagining that the governments we created can actually defy us?
The reason Kabul government was not participating in Doha was — Taliban did not sant them. Why have US substitute when ending occuoatiin can inly happen when US agrees. Once Takiban got assurances if gradual withdrawal, it accepted gradual inclusion if Afghan government into talks., Remember, they all have met and taljed in Russia recently. Niw that Taliban has US assurances of withdrawal — time for US to pull a plug. But Taliban did not give up anything for this imaginary promise of withdrawal. So, Khalilizad can take his tots and go home. Back to the old stalemate. Everybidy is frustrated in Afghanistan. Okd president Karzai had invested a lots of effort to get Kabul government have back door to Taliban. Hopefully not all wasted.
“John Walker Lindh, an American captured with the Taliban in November 2001
just weeks after the US launched the war in Afghanistan, is to be
released in May after 17 years in prison”. Hopefully, this occupation will end soon.