AhlulBayt News Agency

source : PressTV
Tuesday

10 January 2012

8:30:00 PM
290069

Afghani Shia Cleric: Taliban Qatar office shows US defeat

Washington's defeat in the Afghan war has forced the US administration to turn to negotiations with the Taliban, said an Afghan official.

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - In an exclusive interview, a member of Afghan High Peace Council Mohammad Akbari said the US has failed to keep promises of bringing peace and security to Afghanistan after a decade of war in the country.

He added that US talks with the Taliban also aim to weaken the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

For more than a year, US and Taliban officials have secretly negotiated the opening of a Taliban office in Qatar in return for the release of Taliban high-ranking prisoners in Germany and Qatar.

It is not clear when the office will open, and there is also likely to be disagreement about the role of the Kabul government.

The Afghan president under pressure from the White House accepted the US proposal to let militants establish an office outside Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, the High Peace Council has warned no foreign power should engage with the Taliban without Afghanistan's consent and that the office should only be used to conduct negotiations.

The US-led war on Afghanistan was launched under the pretext of toppling the Taliban regime. Now after a decade, the White House has decided to hold negotiations with the militants.  

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