Why Moscow Summit is Crucial for Afghanistan
The mentioned issues have added to the significance of the Moscow summit and will take out peace talks from US monopoly.
What happened that peace talks abruptly launched and America prepared to sit with Taliban around a negotiating table. If we answer it in general, the response is “I do not know”. But a series of issues occurred in the world and regional levels which the US showed flexibility and open to dialogue. Our point is not that, now, attention has turned to Moscow and that what will happen between various political spectrum (opposed to government) and the Taliban group there.
Good publicity has been made about the meeting and a question rose that why this meeting is important. Why everyone put a notice on it.
A number of issues should be raised in order to explain the importance of the Moscow meeting.
The talks are not monopolistic
Despite talks between Taliban and America, this meeting is not monopolistic and various social-political spectrum such as the Afghan politicians opposed to government, united front, technocrats, neighboring and regional countries and the Afghan community living in Russia attend the meeting. This is somehow an intra-Afghan meeting and the Afghan people themselves manage the talks. As the talks are not monopolistic and there is no selective political approach, the outcome will soon be published and the Afghan people will become aware of the details.
In the past, this question has always raised after talks that what happened between the Taliban and the Americans and why nothing was told to the media. Because different political movements are present at the meeting, the possibility to bypass or deal with the post-2001 achievements and values reduces to the least.
The presence of regional countries and the formation of a regional consensus
As a powerful country, Russia has a good knowledge of Afghanistan besides having the potential of orientating the situation in the region. Moscow cannot tolerate terror groups like ISIS to infiltrate into Central Asia – as its backyard – under the pretext of intelligence.
Iran has lots of cultural influence and, on the other hand, it does not want US presence in Afghanistan. So, Tehran pushes to end the 18-year war in the country or at least the US lose ground in Afghanistan.
Pakistan, on the one hand, has a problem with India and on the other hand, has experienced tense relations with America. As far as Islamabad is concerned, he has pursued his interests in Afghanistan in two ways; sometimes with religious extremist groups and sometimes with the leverage of China and Russia. Pakistan knows well that the continuation of the war in Afghanistan closes its closest route to the vast energy resources of Central Asia.
Turkey, though geographically distant, has a lot of interests in Afghanistan. Turkey is trusted by Afghan religious politicians and technocrats. Ankara has had a successful experience in reconciling religion and modernity, which is better for Afghanistan to escape the effects of some countries that are bent on religious fundamentalism.
China is located right in the far northeast of Afghanistan; a treasure that has not been discovered so well and should be taken into consideration. China recently recognized the Taliban as a political force, which means gaining the trust of a group that has always tried to be known as a political movement rather than a terrorist.
The mentioned issues have added to the significance of the Moscow summit and will take out peace talks from US monopoly. Inclusive peace talks can provide satisfaction for all political, ethnic, linguistic, religious and gender segments that will lead to lasting peace. Moreover, the delegation that left Kabul for Moscow released a statement, saying they will defend the post-18 year achievements and safeguard an Islamic Republic system which is, in fact, in line to lasting peace. Now, if the presidential palace (ARG) opposes, every citizen in the country will notice a kind of bypassing of the “peace” by it.
