Politics

Government Insists on Ceasefire amid US-Taliban Talks in Doha

Sunday, January 19, 2020
Kabul (BNA) Amid US and Taliban new round of talks in Doha which is focused on signing of a deal, the presidential spokesman Sediq Sediqqi during a press conference on Saturday said that Afghan people, government and its allies are insisting on a complete ceasefire before the next step in the peace process.
Addressing media at the Government Media and Information Center here in Kabul, Sediqqi said talks are underway between US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad’s team and the Taliban negotiators, but there has been "no progress so far," referring specifically to discussions about a ceasefire or reduction in violence.
Sediqqi said that ending the war and bringing peace to the country were priorities of the government and “the president and the people of Afghanistan have always insisted on a ceasefire.”
He reiterated that the people should see a ceasefire because it is the "most important demand of Afghans."
Presidential spokesman said the Afghan government hoped that the Taliban would have returned from Quetta having accepted the call for a ceasefire in order to move towards a dignified peace.
Sediqqi reiterated that President Ghani and his US counterpart, during their meeting in Bagram late in November last year, "agreed" that a ceasefire should be a precondition for intra-Afghan negotiations.
Repeating his previous comments, Sediqqi said that reduction in violence “is not practical” and “we hope that the Taliban will end violence as it will lead them nowhere.”
The Taliban "should accept a ceasefire if they are really interested in peace," as it is the "demand of the people of Afghanistan," he said.
The process will "not achieve any results without the role of the Afghan government,” Sediqqi said, recalling the pause in the peace talks in Doha last year in September. “Peace is ours; we should remain involved.”
In this latest round of peace talks in Qatar, the Taliban has reportedly agreed to a reduction in violence for a 10-day period which means the group will not carry out attacks in urban areas, sources close to the meetings told Media.

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