Peace Agreement with Afghanistan
“The agreement between the United States and the Taliban contains a clause stipulating that Afghan soil would not be used against the security of a country. We made a commitment and nothing like this has happened since,” he said. The contrast between the Trump administration`s efforts in February 2020 and a genuine peace deal is all too clear once you look at these new US proposals in detail, and it becomes all too clear that the efforts under the Trump administration have not even met the conditions that the US has set for withdrawing from South Vietnam. “This will maintain a certain level of pressure on the Taliban to live up to their fundamental commitment under the Doha agreement,” he said. The United States, which has struggled to obtain better rights for women and minorities and to create a democratic system and institutions in Afghanistan, has reached an agreement with an insurgency that has never clearly renounced its desire for a government and judicial system rooted in a strict interpretation of Islam. Second, the United States should make it clear that regional powers must now try to deal with their neighbor and assume their own responsibilities. There are worse approaches than shifting the burden of what is emerging in Afghanistan to China, Russia and Iran. and Pakistan. The President and Vice-Presidents [as well as cabinet] are appointed in Appendix A, have been selected on the basis of an agreement between the two parties and are acceptable to both parties.
The President [and Vice-Presidents] may serve only during the term of office of the peace government and may not at any time in the future serve as Head of State or Head of Government in Afghanistan. The President and Vice-Presidents may be dismissed only in accordance with the procedures laid down in the Constitution in force. Supporters of the withdrawal say America`s continued military presence no longer makes sense after nearly two decades in Afghanistan. Some lawmakers have criticized the plan, including the Democratic senator. Jeanne Shaheen, who says the Taliban force is putting Afghans in grave danger. Option (1): Membership of the Provincial Council shall be extended by [xx%] in the following provinces, with the Taliban appointing the new members: [xxxxxxxx]. New members are selected with particular attention to women and the representative balance between the demographic groups in each province. Among other things, the February pact also provided for a prisoner exchange, the opening of intra-Afghan negotiations and the lifting of sanctions. The Afghan government was not a party to the February agreement. The U.S. has lost significant influence over the Taliban by declaring an unconditional withdrawal, said Muska Dastageer, associate professor of peace and security studies at the American University of Afghanistan in Kabul.
The Administration shall establish joint committees with equitable representation of both Parties to this Agreement to develop national policies on other issues crucial to peace, including (i) transitional justice, with a focus on the rights of victims on both sides, truth and reconciliation; (ii) rehabilitation, subsistence and reintegration of ex-combatants; (iii) economic development; (iv) counter-narcotics; (v) refugees and displaced persons; (vi)traditional dispute resolution; and (vii) any other matter deemed necessary. Each party appoints seven members of the Islamic Council, with the president appointing the fifteenth. It will also review all draft laws, decrees and ordinances before they are adopted to ensure compliance with the beliefs and regulations of Islam. In cases where the Islamic Council and the Supreme Court disagree on Islamic law, a joint reconciliation session is convened. If no solution is found, the Supreme Court`s position is final and binding. “I truly believe the Taliban want to do something to show that we are not wasting all our time,” President Trump said in Washington hours after the deal was signed. “When bad things happen, we go back.” Coll said the “nightmare scenario” will bring the country back to a civil war with many parties and few restrictions. Such an outcome will be devastating for Afghans, especially the younger generation who have grown up in urban centres over the past 20 years, he warned. “A six-month extension will give us a way to solve the other problems, namely finding a political solution, a ceasefire, etc. ” said Barnett Rubin, a former State Department official. Former President Hamid Karzai (left) and Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar (second from right) attend an international peace conference in Moscow, Russia, in March.
Russia hosted a peace conference for Afghanistan, attended by government officials and their Taliban opponents, as well as regional observers, to kick off the stalled peace process in the country. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool/AP Hide caption Much of the peace negotiations took place during a year of record violence on both sides. In the last quarter of 2019 alone, the Taliban carried out 8,204 attacks, the highest figure for that period in the last ten years. The U.S. dropped 7,423 bombs and missiles during the year, a record since the Air Force began recording data in 2006. “The timing surprised me,” Dastageer said of Biden`s announcement. “I wonder if the consequences of the timing of this announcement have been taken into account in relation to the peace process, assuming that it could seriously deter the Taliban and effectively hamper the peace process. My fear is that we are here today. The last time Afghans sat down together to renegotiate a government structure was the 2001 Bonn Agreement, which established the current democratic political order but excluded the Taliban. This time, the Taliban are part of the negotiations, but Afghanistan has changed dramatically since they came to power in the late 1990s. It is now a sovereign nation with citizenship whose expectations have developed over the past 20 years of development, youthful democratic politics and engagement with the international community.
Rubin said the U.S. must negotiate with the Taliban on a possible extension. Alternatively, “there will certainly be a very serious escalation of violence.” Under the agreement, the U.S. initially reduced its military presence from 12,000 to about 8,600 troops and closed several bases in June. Any further military withdrawal should be conditional on the Taliban fulfilling their commitments. The Pentagon recently announced a further reduction to 2,500 troops before President-elect Biden took office. At present, Afghan peace negotiations (AFN) between the Afghan government and the Taliban do not involve a third-party presence beyond moderation and support. Parties to the conflict and members of the international community could consider the benefits of a third neutral mediator to break the deadlocks that have followed and delayed negotiations so far. Although the presence of a mediator does not guarantee success, there are very few examples of a major peace agreement reached without any type of third-party support or mediation. The plan also offers at least a small opportunity to expand the peace process, demand real peace efforts from the Ghani government, and create the conditions under which the offer of external aid – despite all current indicators – could potentially lead the Taliban to a compromise. .