Sidelining Kabul to Undercut Final Peace Deal

Afghan ambassador to Washington Roya Rahmani has recently criticized the ongoing peace talks, saying that sidelining the Afghan government will undercut any final peace agreement.

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Afghan ambassador to Washington Roya Rahmani has recently criticized the ongoing peace talks, saying that sidelining the Afghan government will undercut any final peace agreement.
“If a peace [deal] is to be negotiated and is to be durable, it cannot keep going on without the presence of the Afghan people,” Washington Times quoted Ms Rahmani as saying.
“For the Taliban to discuss [peace] on behalf of 35 million Afghans, on what basis are they going to that? They are not our government, they are not our representatives,” she added.

Ms. Rahmani said sidelining the elected government in Kabul will undercut any hopes of a final deal.
The talks, she said, “cannot keep going on without the backing of the Afghan people.”
Criticizing the bilateral talks between the US and Taliban, Ms Rahmani said, “they (Taliban) clearly choose violence as a means of leverage. It has contributed to their morale on the ground.”

Earlier, Afghan NSA Hamdullah Mohib had severely criticized US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad over his approach towards peace talks. Mr Mohib had said that ambassador Khalilzad does not provide exact information to Afghanistan about the talks.
It is worth mentioning that the Afghan government is suspicious about the US – Taliban talks, interpreting it as sidelining the Afghan government.