KABUL (SW) – The Taliban’s Qatar office spokesman said on Tuesday an agreement would soon be inked with the U.S. in the presence of a number of foreign envoys.
Suhail Shaheen told Salam Watandar the talks would continue in Qatar on Tuesday despite Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. Special Representatives for Afghanistan, departing for India today. He said soon an agreement would be reached and signed in the presence of envoys from a number of regional countries including China, Russia and the UN.
In conversation with SW, a number of political analysts said China and Russia are key players in the Afghan conflict.
Hekmat Shahbaz, an analyst, said the presence of representatives from China and Russia during the signing of the proposed peace agreement is important.
Yonus Fakoor, another analyst, stressed an agreement between the U.S. and Taliban alone cannot ensure stability in Afghanistan. He highlighted importance of the ceasefire and peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government. Fakoor said Uygur insurgents from China and Chechen insurgents from Russia are fighting alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan.
This comes as Khalilzad announced he would travel to India on Tuesday to further build international consensus in support of the peace process. After three-day talks with the Taliban in Qatar, he said ‘excellent progress’ has been made. “My team & Taliban representatives will continue to discuss technical details as well as steps and mechanisms required for a succesful implementation of the four-part agreement we've been working toward since my appointment. Agreement on these details is essential”, he tweeted before departing for India.
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