KABUL (SW) – The U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation has stressed that the aim behind the ongoing peace talks with the Taliban is a comprehensive peace deal, not a withdrawal agreement.
In a series of tweets ahead of the seventh round of talks with the Taliban, Zalmay Khalilzad said a comprehensive peace agreement is made up of four inter-connected parts: counter-terrorism assurances, troop withdrawal, intra-Afghan negotiations that lead to a political settlement; and a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire.
He claimed this is a framework which the Taliban accept.
“As we prepare for the next round of talks with the Taliban, important to remember we seek a comprehensive peace agreement, NOT a withdrawal agreement”, he tweeted.
Separately, the Taliban’s Qatar office spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, has claimed in these talks, the U.S. has agreed to withdraw all forces from Afghanistan and to not intervene in future Afghan affairs.
ENDS
