Monday, January 13, 2020
Kabul (BNA) The government of Afghanistan emphasized on ceasefire as a precondition to peace talks as Taliban rejected suggestion of violence reduction.
Sediqi Sediqi, a spokesman for President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, said on Twitter that reducing violence does not have an exact military and legal definition and is not practical.
He said that the government aims a ceasefire like the one which happened during Eid days two years ago.
Sediqi said that ceasefire has been experienced worldwide. “For us, ensuring peace means end of war. Outbreak of different forms of violence is linked to war. It is needed that the plans presented should have clarity,” Sediqi said.
US special peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad renewed talks with the Taliban last month on steps that could lead to ceasefire and a settlement of the 18-year-long war in Afghanistan.
Those talks had been halted by US President Donald Trump in September due to a deadly attack in Kabul. Khalilzad has paused the talks for the Taliban to consult with their leadership, but the group said that it had no intention of declaring a ceasefire and that its consultations were only about reducing violence.
