SPATE of attacks in Afghanistan in the last few days has fur ther complicated the situation vis-à-vis commencement of the intra-Afghan dialogue. On Monday, the Taliban reportedly killed about two dozenAfghan police and pro-government fighters in two separate attacks. The US-Taliban peace deal signed in February this year was touted as Afghanistan’s best chance yet of ending its relentless wars. However, the recent developments in the wartorn country especially violence and the concerns expressed by the Taliban on the negotiating team of Afghan government has put the whole process at a serious stake. Given the history of Afghanistan, everybody was anticipating that the peace process will not be trouble free and that it will hit many roadblocks as there are certain spoilers who do not want return of peace and stability to the country. In such kind of situation, the role of important capitals especially Washington gains more significance. Undoubtedly, despite faced with the serious challenge of Corona Virus, the US Administration has, up till now, shown the seriousness and commitment to pave the way for the intra- Afghan dialogue. For this purpose, the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo recently visited Kabul. We expect that the US side will continue to exert its pressure on both the sides to sit on the table of negotiations to reach the final agreement. Certainly, talks cannot take place in an environment when violence and bloodshed is going on. Hence, both the sides must exercise restraint and abide by the deal signed in Doha. The first confidence building measure has to be taken by the Afghan Government by agreeing to the swap of prisoners. Then most importantly, the Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and self-appointed President Abdullah Abdullah needs to settle their differences as their acrimony is impeding each step towards talks with the Taliban. Both the leaders should rise above their vested political interests and sit together to discuss the way forward for a meaningful dialogue with the Taliban. In the power sharing formula, every stakeholder will have to demonstrate flexibility and openheartedness to reach the final deal.
