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Doha:
Peace talks between the Taliban and Afghan authorities get all the way down to enterprise Sunday, with the seek for a long-lasting ceasefire one in every of many key challenges up for dialogue.
A slick opening ceremony within the Qatari capital Doha on Saturday noticed the Afghan authorities, and allies together with the US, name for a ceasefire.
But the Taliban, who’ve fought a guerrilla marketing campaign towards each since they have been pressured from energy in 2001, didn’t point out a truce as they got here to the negotiating desk.
The head of the peace course of for the Afghan authorities instructed to AFP that the Taliban may supply a truce in alternate for the discharge of extra of their jailed fighters.
“This could be one of their ideas or one of their demands,” mentioned Abdullah Abdullah, the chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation.
Negotiations will likely be arduous and messy, delegates warned in the course of the opening ceremony, and are beginning at the same time as lethal violence continues to grip Afghanistan.
“We will undoubtedly encounter many challenges in the talks over the coming days, weeks and months,” US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo mentioned as he known as for the warring sides to “seize this opportunity” to safe peace.
Nearly twenty years because the US-led invasion that toppled the Taliban, the warfare nonetheless kills dozens of individuals every day and the nation’s economic system has been shattered, pushing thousands and thousands into poverty.
The Taliban have lengthy frightened that lowering violence may reduce their leverage.
‘Very optimistic’
During a speech on the opening occasion, Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar repeated the insurgents’ message that Afghanistan ought to be run in line with Islamic legislation, highlighting a probable sticking level.
A complete peace deal may take years, and can rely on the willingness of either side to tailor their competing visions for Afghanistan and the extent to which they’ll conform to share energy.
President Ashraf Ghani’s authorities desires to take care of the Western-backed establishment of a constitutional republic that has enshrined many rights, together with better freedoms for ladies.
Four of the 21 folks on the Kabul negotiating staff are girls.
The Taliban, who stripped girls of all fundamental freedoms whereas in energy from 1996-2001, had no feminine negotiators.
In a press release, Ghani known as for “a lasting and dignified peace” that preserved “the achievements of the past 19 years”.
Kabul negotiator Habiba Sarabi advised AFP the beginning of talks had been “very positive”.
The US-backed negotiations come six months later than deliberate owing to disagreements over a controversial prisoner swap agreed in February.
Under the phrases of that pressure withdrawal deal struck between the US and the Taliban, 5,000 Taliban prisoners have already been launched in alternate for 1,000 authorities forces.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV employees and is revealed from a syndicated feed.)
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