Return of Afghan refugees key for peace, says official

KABUL: President Ashraf Ghani’s special envoy for peace and state minister in peace affairs, Abdul Salam Rahimi, on Wednesday, told members of Afghanistan’s Senate that achieving peace will not be applicable unless all Afghan refugees living abroad return to the country.

Rahimi voiced support for the recent diplomatic efforts by the US and the Afghan politicians for engaging in meaningful talks with the Taliban. “One of the conditions of the success of peace is the return of refugees to the country,” Rahimi said. Some senators in the Meshrano Jirga, the Upper House of the Parliament, said they are skeptical about the nature of the US-Taliban talks and hey see some sort of “confusion” in it.

“We are skeptical about the seven rounds of talks between the US and the Taliban. These talks have remained vague to us,” the Senate Speaker Fazl Hadi Muslimyar said. “Peace is a national process and it should not be monopolized by anyone,” said Ghairat Baheer, a Senator. This comes a week after the US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad wrapped up his marathon talks with the Taliban representatives in Doha with “lots of progress” on four key issues under debate in the negotiations.