Knowledge Partner
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Diplomatist
A t the * me of wri * ng this analysis , Afghanistan ' s President Ashraf Ghani had acknowledged the fact that his government cannot survive for more than six months without US support ; the media and the locals had warned that the fall of Farah Province is imminent ; the Taliban had carried out a 17-hour-long deadly aQack on the Intercon * nental Hotel in Kabul as well as a deadly massacre in the Interior Ministry Street that lej 103 death and 235 wounded .
The conflict in Afghanistan is one of the longest con * nuing ones , and as the context of armed conflict in the 21st century changes , the dis * nc * veness of this war also transforms . The Afghan war has two important factors : first , it is apparently against civilians ; and second , it is * meless and enduring . This analysis focuses mostly on the pathology of the peace process with the Taliban because learning from the past could help reduce the complexity of the process and may put an end to this prolonged and devasta * ng war .
Since 2005 , Afghanistan has raised the evident fact that the terrorism tree and its branches rooted in Pakistan destabilised the whole region including Afghanistan . The Afghan government has already undertaken several vital steps towards peace with the Taliban . Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai established the Program Tahkim-e Solh ( Strengthening Peace Program ) in 2005 and aQempted reconcilia * on with the Taliban in 2006 and 2009 . The
Neutrality of the Mediator
Established by the government in 2010 as the official nego * a * on body , the Afghanistan High Peace Council ( HPC ) was ini * ally chaired by former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani ; and the current chairman , Mohammad Karim Khalili , is also the chief of the Hizb-e Wahdat-e Islami Afghanistan party . In reality , the abovemen * oned figures could not remain neutral because they have a history of figh * ng against the Taliban un * l 2001 . In late 1996 ajer the Taliban took over Kabul , the Northern Alliance — an alliance of various poli * cal groups — was put together , among others , by former President Rabbani . Leaders of different ethnic groups , including Khalili , had joined him to defeat the Taliban . When Rabbani , the head of the Jamiat-e-Islami party — which was one of the par * es in the conflict — was appointed as a nego * ator with the Taliban , many disputes remained unsolved and the Taliban subsequently assassinated him in 2011 .
Differences in Defini @ ons of a Peace Deal
The Taliban and the Afghan gove r n m e nt h ave d i ffe re nt assump * ons and defini * ons of peace talks . Afghanistan will never discuss peace with the Taliban if peace were to mean a “ powersharing ” arrangement . The Afghan government seeks to achieve peace from a posi * on of strength so that they can make an agreement like the one signed w i t h t h e H e z b - e - I s l a m i Afghanistan ( HIA ). However , the
The Taliban and the Afghan government have different assump @ ons and defini @ ons of peace talks . Afghanistan never will discuss peace with the Taliban if peace were to mean a “ power-sharing ” arrangement .
Taliban views the Afghan government ' s objec * ve of achieving peace as the laQer ' s aQempt at “ disarmament .” The Taliban interprets any possible deal as laying down their weapons — tools they do not want to let go . As a result , despite years of nego * a * ons , there is no mutually agreed defini * on or even similar understanding of peace between the two sides .
Peace Project
Image 4 : High Peace Council Chairman Burhanuddin Rabbani addressing the press along with southern Afghan provincial governors in Kandahar City , Afghanistan , in 2010 names of some Taliban leaders were removed from the UN sanc * ons list , the government aQempted to talk directly with Pakistan several * mes , and Afghan presidents visited Pakistan more than any other country during their presidencies . However , the war con * nued and the cri * cality of adding new approaches towards peace has become much more important .
A process is generally an ongoing ac * vity with a long-term vision to achieve a tangible goal , but a “ project ” has a fixed beginning , end , objec * ve and outcome to be accomplished . Afghanistan ’ s peace process has to be altered into a project with a foreseeable * meline and tangible objec * ves to be accomplished . The HPC and the government must carry out a cost-benefit evalua * on in a * mely manner , the risk and outputs should be assessed , and the project has to be elevated to the next phase when the previous phase takes place as planned .
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