by Claudio Bertolotti
The reunion was a non-official meeting, not supposed to be any sort of negotiation, where all participants were free to express their personal opinions on a non-attributive basis
Both sides, on the one hand, confirmed with official statements the participation to the meeting and, on the other hand, clarified that it was the participants were attending the meetings in their personal capacities. Afghan government called the meetings a ‘scientific discussions’, the Taliban used the definition ‘research conference’; both the sides underlined that the meeting should not be misconstrued as peace or negotiation talks. Still, after years of efforts to get a concrete peace process going, expectations were relatively high for the meeting.
The focus of the discussion was a possible cease-fire,
but depending from the total withdrawal of U.S. troops in Afghanistan. A joint
final statement based on fifteen main points was released by the Pugwash
Conferences on Science and World Affairs. In brief:
1. General appreciation of the positive value of the
meeting, and gratitude towards the State of Qatar.
2. Common
will to work for peace in Afghanistan ending the conflict.
3.
Protection of civilians as a priority.
4. Common
opinion on the fact that foreign forces have to leave Afghanistan soon.
5. Remove
the Taliban from the black-lists.
6.
Contrast to corruption and the production/selling of drugs.
7. The
value of education for both men and women was underlined by everybody.
8.
Discussion on political system and the constitution of Afghanistan.
9. The
model for the government is the Islamic one.
10. The
so-called Islamic State (Daesh) is alien.
11.
Amicable and cooperative relations with neighboring countries and no
interference with Afghan internal affairs.
12. The
meeting of 2-3 May 2015 should be followed up by other meetings.
13. The
Taliban’s office in Doha should be opened to facilitate meetings and talks.
14.
Qatar, UN and non-governmental international organizations should support the
peace process.
15.
Public interest and well-being of the Afghan people are the main issue.
The most sensitive point still remains the question of
the withdrawal of foreign troops: both the sides agreed on the principle that
foreign forces to leave the country soon. It is an important step forward to an
acceptable exit-strategy although the necessity of the US to maintain the strategic
military bases on the Afghan soil.
The Taliban reported that the
eight elements of their
delegation were all attending in their personal capacities, and that the
meeting “should not be misconstrued as peace or negotiation talks.”It
is important to underline that the Taliban issued a statement about the event confirming,
on the one hand, that they were taking place and, on
the other hand, who was attending (within the Taliban group
there were the significant figures of Sher Mohammad Abbas
Stanikzai – former top Taliban official and head
of the delegation –, and
Sohail Shaheen – spokesman for the Taliban’s Qatar office).On the other side, Afghan government group included an assorted range of representatives, among them reconciled Taliban; Tajik, Pashtun and Uzbek leaders; and President Ashraf Ghani’s uncle, Abdul Qayoum Kochai. It is a clear sign of the Afghan government commitment to follow the strategy of the dialogue and the compromise in order to establish a sort of agreement aimed to the power-sharing and a calculated balance of power.
Furthermore, one of the most important factor is represented by the location of the meeting; this is a clear indicator of the willingness of the Qataris to play a key role as intermediaries in Afghan peace talks.
Finally, considering the Pakistani interest in the Taliban dynamics, the Qatari conference could represent an effort by the Afghan Taliban to strike out independently of the Pakistanis.
Claudio Bertolotti, Ph.D, is Assistant Professor of Area Analysis at CSPCO (Turin), Senior Analyst at CeMiSS (Rome), and Italian representative at CEMRES «5+5 Defense Initiative 2015» (Tunis).
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