Masoud Andarabi, Minister of Interior Affairs, said Saturday the Taliban is playing for time in the ongoing peace negotiations in Doha and waiting to see what the new US administration decides following the inauguration of Joe Biden last week.
Biden’s administration has confirmed that they will review the US-Taliban agreement signed in February last year and that they will assess whether the Taliban has met the conditions as per the deal, which includes ensuring a reduction in violence and the cutting of all ties with Al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups.
According to the deal, if Taliban meets the conditions, Washington will withdraw the last of its troops by May.
Andarabi meanwhile said in an interview with BBC, that the Taliban has increased the level of violence and ramped up targeted attacks across the country in a bid to pressurize the government into giving in to their demands.
He said the group wants the government to release the remaining Taliban prisoners and to accept an Islamic Emirate.
Andarabi also said the Taliban believes in conflict as a solution.
“The Taliban are waiting for the withdrawal of US forces and the group is targeting civil society activists and journalists in order to [get the government to] release more [Taliban] prisoners, as well as to impose Islamic Emirate ideology in governing,” he said.
The Interior Minister added that the Taliban attacks jeopardize all hard-won achievements of the last two decades.
“How committed are they (Taliban) to the values that we have gained with giving hundreds and thousands of sacrifices?” Andarabi asked.
The Taliban has not commented yet. The group, however, has frequently emphasized its commitment to bringing peace to Afghanistan.
