[The U.S. team has demanded the Taliban agree to a complete cease-fire and asked the militants to agree to direct talks with the Afghan government. The Taliban has thus far refused to meet directly with Afghan officials. There are currently around 14,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan, and the Taliban has demanded all foreign troops withdraw from the country.]
By Siobhán O'Grady and Sharif Hassan
 |
|
US
special envoy for peace in Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, talks with local
reporters at
the US embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan November 18, 2018 Reuters
|
KABUL — The United States proposed to
pull forces from five bases in Afghanistan within 135 days after a peace deal
is signed, the top U.S. negotiator with the Taliban said Monday, after briefing
Afghan officials on a draft agreement with the militant group.
In
an interview with Afghan news outlet ToloNews, U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad
described the proposed plan to draw back U.S. troops and said he had “reached
an agreement with the Taliban in principle.”
“But
it is not final until the president of the United States also agrees to it,” he
said.
In
the interview, Khalilzad declined to name the U.S. bases that would be
affected, but noted any withdrawal would be contingent on the Taliban abiding
by the terms of the agreement. Khalilzad revealed that under the current terms
of the draft deal, the Taliban would be known as the Islamic Emirate — their
preferred name. The United States, however, would not recognize the Taliban as
the legitimate government of Afghanistan.
He
said that while Afghan government officials were shown the draft on Monday,
they were not given their own copies.
“It
is our agreement with the Taliban, not their agreement with the Taliban,” he
said, referring to the Afghan government.
He
declined to say whether the deal was met with approval from Afghan government
officials.
Khalilzad
flew to Kabul on Sunday after announcing on Twitter that he had wrapped up the
latest round of peace talks with the Taliban in Qatar and that the two sides
were on “the threshold” of a deal. The United States and the Taliban have met
for nine rounds of peace talks over the last 10 months.
This
week, the Taliban attacked two major cities in northern Afghanistan, killing
dozens of civilians and security forces and renewing fears of increased
violence, even as Khalilzad said a deal was close.
On
Monday, presidential spokesman Sediq Seddiqi told reporters here that Khalilzad
showed Afghan President Ashraf Ghani a copy of the draft agreement and that the
Afghan government would take the following days to review it and offer
feedback. Khalilzad also met with Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah on Monday.
The
U.S. team has demanded the Taliban agree to a complete cease-fire and asked the
militants to agree to direct talks with the Afghan government. The Taliban has
thus far refused to meet directly with Afghan officials. There are currently
around 14,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan, and the Taliban has demanded all
foreign troops withdraw from the country.
Last
week, President Trump told Fox News radio that his administration planned to
reduce troop levels to around 8,600, but did not offer a timeline for their
withdrawal.
A
presidential election is scheduled here for Sept. 28, and Ghani is up for a
second term. The vote has already been postponed twice, but critics have urged
him to postpone the election again, saying it could threaten the peace process.
The independent electoral commission has also warned that around 2,000 polling
places will be closed due to insecurity. Abdullah, Ghani’s top competitor in
the upcoming election, said this week he would be willing to “quit elections
for the sake of peace.”
But
on Monday, Seddiqi, Ghani’s spokesman, doubled down on plans to move forward
with the vote later this month.
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