The US and Taliban stances have not inched closer as much as expected even after six rounds of marathon negotiations aimed to find a political settlement to the simmering Afghan conflict. Both sides, as per their public statements, seem to be at loggerheads over the agenda of the imminent seventh round of talks. Sohail Shaheen, the Taliban’s spokesman for their Doha-based political office, said in a sketchy tweet a few days ago that the United States has agreed to withdraw all of its troops from Afghanistan, and committed not to interfere in Afghanistan’s internal affairs in the future. In response to the remarks, the US special representative for Afghan peace and reconciliation, Zalmay Khalilzad, tweeted that Washington was seeking a comprehensive peace agreement, not a withdrawal agreement in its talks with the Taliban. He reiterated his previous stance saying that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed upon.
The US and Taliban positions clearly show that the next round of parleys between the two sides will also be full of challenges, and may therefore not be expected to yield any tangible results. The problem in the ongoing talks between Americans and the Taliban that has so far made a breakthrough difficult is the unnecessary persistence of each side on individual stances. The US is trying to drag the Taliban to the negotiating table with Afghan government before the announcement of a timeline for troop withdrawal, whereas the Taliban are insisting that Americans should announce the troop drawdown schedule before they could enter direct talks with Afghan government. Lack of trust between them is the key factor for this near stalemate. Americans and Taliban remain skeptical of each other’s intentions. The Taliban are still unsure that the United States is truly seeking a political settlement to the conflict which can bring an end to foreign military presence in Afghanistan. On the other hand, they do not have the experience of political bargaining, and therefore proceed with extreme caution fearing that a minor error or miscalculation in the peace talks can ruin their hard-won battlefield gains. Similarly, the United States has a concern that if a troop withdrawal schedule is announced before direct talks kick off between the Taliban and Afghan government, the militants may continue to hold their traditional stance, and refuse to hold talks with the government. Moreover, the announcement of foreign troop withdrawal timetable can further embolden and assure the Taliban of a military victory.
The peace talks have reached a crucial stage, where both sides have to show flexibility and rescue the process from ending up in complete failure. The parties need to agree on some trust-building measures so that they can assure of each other’s intentions, thereby opening the door for major decisions on peace in the future. If the Taliban and Americans continue to firmly hold on to their positions as in the previous rounds, the progress achieved so far can go in vain.