Afghanistan's president rejects foreign interference
August 11, 2019
Afghanistan's president has said peace is only possible with an agreement between Afghanistan and the Taliban. His remarks come amid US efforts to finalize a peace deal with the Taliban.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/N. Khan
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Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday said he did not want foreign nations to interfere in the country's affairs, as the United States and the Taliban appear near to closing a peace deal without the government's input.
Ghani made the comments during the Muslim holiday Eid-al-Adha, while US and Taliban negotiators continue to work towards the peace deal in the Gulf nation of Qatar, where the insurgents have a political office.
In a televised speech, Ghani referenced the upcoming presidential elections and said that "without a legitimate and strong government that comes through an election, Afghans won't be able to achieve a dignified peace."
"Our future cannot be decided outside, whether in the capital cities of our friends, nemeses or neighbors. The fate of Afghanistan will be decided here in this homeland," Ghani said. "We don't want anyone to intervene in our affairs."
Ghani emphasied that peace was only possible "between the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Taliban movement."
US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad is hoping to reach a peace deal by September 1, weeks before Afghanistan's presidential election.
The Taliban has consistently refused to take part in direct talks with the government, which they have labeled a "puppet."
The US and the Taliban are expected to agree on the withdrawal of some 20,000 US and NATO troops in return for Taliban assurances that Afghanistan would not be a base for other extremist groups.
Further details of the deal are scarce, but Khalilzad and the lead Taliban negotiator, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, have been traveling in recent days to speak to several countries involved in the process on the latest developments.
A peace deal would be followed by intra-Afghan talks, but it is not yet clear whether the Taliban would agree to talk to Kabul government members in their official capacity or only as ordinary Afghans, as they have done in the past.
The Taliban control about half of Afghanistan and are currently at their strongest since the US-led invasion toppled their five-year-old government in 2001.
Endless battle for power in Afghanistan
Seventeen years after the US invasion of Afghanistan, the war-torn country remains in the grip of Islamist violence. A string of deadly attacks in the last year suggests militants are stronger than ever.
Image: picture alliance/Photoshot
Fragile security
Repeated attacks in Afghanistan in 2018 and 2019 have killed and wounded hundreds of innocent Afghans, and shown the world the fragile and worsening state of security in the conflict-stricken country. The incidents have plunged war-weary Afghan citizens into a state of despair and highlighted the limitations faced by the government in Kabul in ensuring public security.
Image: Reuters/M. Ismail
A long series of attacks
The violent incidents have made Afghanistan once again a staple of international headlines. Outfits like the Taliban and the "Islamic State" (IS) have claimed responsibility for the attacks. The Afghan government is under heavy pressure to restore security and take back territory controlled by a number of insurgent groups, including the Taliban and IS.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Hossaini
Spring offensive
In 2018, the Taliban announced the start of their annual spring offensive, dismissing an offer of peace talks by President Ashraf Ghani. The militants, fighting to restore their version of strict Islamic law to Afghanistan, said their campaign was a response to a more aggressive US military strategy adopted in 2017, which aims to force the militants into peace talks.
Image: Reuters
Trump's Afghanistan policy
US President Donald Trump unveiled a new strategy for Afghanistan in 2017, vowing to deploy more troops to train and advise Afghan security forces. Trump also pledged to support Afghan troops in their war against the Taliban and maintain US presence in the country for as long as there was a need for it. In 2019, he reversed course and promised a troop pullout.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/B. Smialowski
Afghan peace process
Despite President Ghani's offer in February 2018 for peace talks "without preconditions," the Taliban had until 2019 shown no interest, dismissing the peace overtures as a "conspiracy."
Image: Getty Images/AFP/N. Shirzad
Pakistani support
Pakistan has been under pressure from Kabul and Washington to stop offering safe havens to militants blamed for attacks in Afghanistan, a charge Islamabad denies and insists that its influence over the insurgents has been exaggerated. Kabul and Islamabad regularly trade accusations of harboring the other country's militants and the harsh language has underscored the strains between them.
Image: DW/H. Hamraz
Role of the warlords
Apart from the Taliban, Afghan warlords exercise massive influence in the country. Last year, Hizb-i-Islami leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar returned to Kabul after a 20-year exile to play an active role in Afghan politics. In September 2016, the Afghan government signed a deal with Hekmatyar in the hope that other warlords and militant groups would seek better ties with Kabul.
Image: Reuters/O.Sobhani
An inefficient government
In the midst of an endless battle for power, President Ghani's approval ratings continue to plummet. Rampant corruption in the Afghan government and a long tug-of-war within the US-brokered national unity government has had a negative impact on the government's efforts to eradicate terrorism.
