India’s participation in the opening session of the negotiations was welcomed by the people of Afghanistan and also by the rest of the international community, says the chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation of Afghanistan.
The chairman of the Afghan High Council for National Reconciliation has been in Delhi this week to brief the government on the Doha peace talks with the Taliban. Talking to The Hindu, He said he received India’s full support for the peace process in talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, NSA Ajit Doval and Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar.
He said his mission is to build a regional consensus for the reconciliation process. Were there any specific guarantees you expected during your visit to New Delhi?
Well, it wasn’t like we were expecting something specific, more like we were exchanging our opinions. India has supported the people of Afghanistan, supported the peace process and we wanted to share the details of what is happening and see how each country can better contribute to that was the goal of the visit. I found a very friendly audience as always. All the leaders I met supported the people of Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, a unified Afghanistan and also a peaceful Afghanistan, and they supported an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process. It is a common opinion between us and India.
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India has taken a step by attending the opening of the Doha talks, the first time an Indian official has addressed a meeting that includes the Taliban. Did you discuss whether India would get more directly involved with the Taliban now?
India’s participation in the opening session of the negotiations was welcomed by the people of Afghanistan and also by the rest of the international community. All surrounding countries in the region are affected by the continuation of the war in Afghanistan. A peaceful Afghanistan will be an opportunity, so India will continue to participate there. I did not have a specific recommendation regarding engagement with the Taliban, but I will say that India will play an important role, active with the rest of the international community partners in the region. [in the process] and beyond.
India has at times been excluded from the process. Like, for example, when the six plus two plus one regional discussions were held, it did not include India. Do you think India will be included in all future regional talks?
I think so. We must bear in mind that these negotiations did not really start in September, and before that there were discussions in different places and countries. But talks have now started among Afghans. India’s position is that as long as the outcome is acceptable to the people of Afghanistan, and is not a threat to anyone, through protection from terrorism or other means, that will be acceptable to India. This is a principled position that is welcomed.
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One of the outstanding issues has been the lack of a ceasefire announcement by the Taliban. And a large part of the Taliban leadership lives in Pakistan. Did you get any assurances about Pakistan’s support when it comes to announcing a ceasefire during your visit there last week?
[We are still hopeful of] a ceasefire or a significant reduction in violence. [Pakistani officials] They supported that idea and also promised that they will communicate it and that they will try to use their own influence to achieve it. We had extensive discussions on that and other aspects of the situation, for a peaceful Afghanistan. And so, they assured me that they will make efforts.Still, do you have any hope? I’m just looking at the numbers: 1,300 civilian casualties in the first half of this year, a 60% increase in attacks against Afghan forces this quarter compared to the previous quarter….
If you talk about the expectations of the people of Afghanistan, they hoped that when the talks begin, we will have a ceasefire or a significant reduction in violence. Our negotiating team was ready from day one to begin discussions on a ceasefire. But these are complicated situations and now we only meet with the Taliban to talk, and not in battle zones as we have done for the last three decades. We have no illusions about the challenges we face. Progress so far has been slow. Hopefully, with the help of different players and also with the patience that we will show, the civility that we will show there will be a transition towards less violence.
But will the talks continue regardless of the violence continuing?
The conversations must continue. But it’s not like the violence could go on forever and the talks would go on forever. Without progress in the talks, this is not feasible, it is not sustainable and we want to reach the other parts of the agenda.
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What else is part of the conversations? While the government has said that Afghanistan’s political structure is non-negotiable, from the Taliban side, the understanding seems to be that everything is on the table. So is there anything that says that democracy is not negotiable, the rights of women and minorities are not negotiable?
The Taliban will come up with their own ideas and we will come up with our own ideas. Can we agree on a common position that accommodates different points of view? The question is, can we agree that although we hold different points of view, we live in a system and compete and fight for the realization of those ideas peacefully, by civil and peaceful means? That is the bottom line.
Are you on the same page as the Afghan government? Just 10 months ago, he was in a legal battle with President Ghani by contesting the presidential election that they both fought. Do you consider that the differences between you and President Ghani are an impediment to the peace process?
That is democracy. Given the fact that we contest elections [against each other] it means we weren’t on the same page on some issues. But when it is in the interest of the country, in the interest of a peaceful Afghanistan, a democratic Afghanistan, an Afghanistan that respects the rights of its citizens, men, women, minorities and others, we are on the same page.
President Trump has already said that by Christmas he expects US troops to return. Other officials have said that perhaps 2,500 soldiers will remain in Afghanistan. Are you also considering the possible need for a regional peacekeeping force if the Americans fully withdraw?
First of all, on the recent announcement by President Trump, the details are not yet available to us. They had already announced, according to their agreement, to keep 4,500 troops and withdraw the rest, which will be completed in November. So we are not sure what these ads are referring to. But eventually, Afghanistan needs to stand up for itself, and the region’s support for a peaceful and inclusive settlement in Afghanistan is important. Hopefully, we will reach an agreement that will not require security forces from other countries to keep us safe.
But have you talked about that possibility in India?
No, no, that was not part of our discussions.
As part of the Northern Alliance, he fought with the Taliban for years. In the government you were the target of attacks, you suffered attacks. Have you reconciled yourself to a process that will bring the same people into the mainstream, perhaps to a place of power in government, that you have fought for much of your life?
The point is that I have fought for certain principles in my life: the independence of Afghanistan, certain freedoms, the rights of the people and those values. And that will not change. What kind of form will the struggle take, if we can fight for it by peaceful means and without resorting to violence, that can change. What happened to me, and I survived several attacks, some very close. But look at the suffering of the people: sometimes up to 50-100 people die in a day, sometimes that must end. That is much more than these emotions or feelings, and certainly as far as my experience in Afghanistan is concerned, I believe that there are no winners in a war, there are no losers in a peaceful and inclusive settlement.
Are you saying peace at any cost?
An acceptable, dignified and sustainable peace.
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