Hamdullah Mohib, Afghanistan’s National Security Adviser, on Wednesday at the Raisina Dialogue multilateral conference in New Delhi, said that “Peace for our people means the end of violence – this is why we insist that a ceasefire is necessary to create a conducive environment for talks.”
“First and most importantly, peace in our land is long overdue. People still long to see a day where they can send their children to school and visit friends without the persistent fear that they might be the target of terrorism,” said Mohib.
He also said that a ceasefire is a catalyst for sustainable peace because the Afghan people earnestly want it, and it will prove to the Afghan people and government that “our enemies are not only serious about peace, but that it is within their control to maintain their part of a future deal.”
Mohib said that President Ghani has urged neighbors and partners to seek peaceful resolution to violent circumstances – not just because Afghanistan’s own national interests require it, but because these principles are enshrined in the UN Charter and they have been the basis of international cooperation for generations.
“We have learned a lot as a nation over the past four decades about what there is to lose from disorder. We did not do so well in learning how to gain from it,” according to Mohib.
He mentioned that over the past 40 years of conflict, Afghanistan was never able to become “antifragile.”
“We were never able to grow from disorder—we only sunk deeper into it. We were never able to overcome the influence of regional and global powers who sought to use our people and our geographical platform to further their own agendas; we were never able to harness the strength of our own diversity; we were never able to take advantage of our geopolitical positioning in this world, turning it into a blessing rather than a curse,” he added.
He believes that things have been changing over the past years, for the better.
“Those of us who were born into war and displacement, and who have come of age as new returnees to the homeland we were forced to leave, see things differently,” he said, “We are not jaded about Afghanistan’s ability to tap its economic potential and thrive; we are not placing bets on the viability of our political structures.”
We are determined to create opportunity from the midst of uncertainty, and move forward and progress, no matter how cluttered the path forward may be with obstacles of threats and risks.
Let the progress of our security forces be a call to those fighting to subvert our democracy and undermine our institutions: The Afghan people and government stand ready to engage in peace talks. But if you refuse to answer this call, prepare to face the full force of the Afghan nation, he said.
The Taliban leaders have held internal discussions over the reduction of violence over the past month.
The US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad is expected to meet Afghan leaders in Kabul once the Taliban finalize their position on the reduction of violence, according to a source close to the process.
