US busy again to save Afghan truce

KABUL: US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad Thursday said the US was committed to facilitating prisoner exchange.

“We must act on all fronts to clear the road of obstacles that slow our progress toward intra-Afghan negotiations. I once again call on all Afghans to rise to the occasion, put country first and not to lose this historic opportunity,” Khalilzad said in a tweet.

Afghan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah agrees with the release of 5,000 Taliban prisoners and 1,000 security forces under the group’s deal with the US, reports the international media.

Earlier, President Ashraf Ghani rejected the release of Taliban prisoners ahead of negotiations which, according to the group’s deal with the United States, are expected to start on March 10. The deal requires the prisoner swap to happen as a confidence building measure before talks.

“We believe all the issues on the draft of the agreement are confirmed and agreed, by both sides, after long and careful discussions, so the things on the peace agreement should be implemented without any delay,” Fraidoon Khawzoon of Abdullah’s side said.

“Trust-building is very important to take the peace talks forward and releasing the 5,000 Taliban and 1,000 ANDSF members is a must,” he added, referring to Afghan government forces.

A spokesman for Ghani did not immediately offer a comment but a senior government official reiterated that it was not practical, and nor a prerequisite for the so-called intra-Afghan talks, that the prisoners be released.

“Over the years, we’ve released hundreds of insurgents as a gesture of good faith but it didn’t help with peace,” said the official, who declined to be identified.

“The government has to be sure the release guarantees peace negotiations with the Taliban,” the official said.

Ghani and Abdullah are old rivals who both held roles in the previous government under a US-brokered power-sharing agreement. A former foreign minister, Abdullah held the specially created post of chief executive in the outgoing government.

Their dispute over the outcome of a Sept. 28 presidential election raises the prospect of chaos as the United States prepares to withdraw its forces after more than 18 years of war.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo Thursday demanded an immediate reduction in violence in Afghanistan but said he still had confidence that the Taliban were committed to a landmark agreement to end the war.

Just days after Pompeo joined the signing of a deal with the Taliban in Qatar, the Taliban have resumed attacks on the Afghan government forces, leading US forces to carry out an air strike on Wednesday.

But the United States is still hoping that the Taliban will open talks with the Afghan government — set under the accord to begin next week — and the top US negotiator flew to Kabul in hopes of pushing through an accompanying massive prisoner swap.

“The upsurge in violence in parts of Afghanistan over the last couple days is unacceptable,” Pompeo told a news conference in Washington.

“Violence must be reduced immediately for the peace process to move forward.”