Taliban Elders Agree to a Short-Term Ceasefire With US

Ceasefire will happen after Afghan peace deal is reached

US hope to get a new peace deal with the Taliban that would include a ceasefire seems to be panning out, as the Taliban sent part of its delegation to Pakistan to meet with elders in the movement, and they have endorsed the idea.

The ceasefire won’t be immediate, or necessarily long-lasting, however. Rather, the ceasefire will come into place for a short-term once
the US-Taliban deal is finalized. Exactly how long it is to last is unclear.

A previous peace deal the US was poised to announce was withdrawn from by President Trump at the last minute, reportedly over the lack of a ceasefire. Trump has insisted on a ceasefire this time, and while negotiators weren’t 100% clear they could, the Taliban leaders went along.

Since the Taliban wanted talks to pick up where they left off last time, they are likely very close to finalizing the deal, though the US temporarily paused it to protest an attack on Bagram.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.