News Release

           

First Round of Afghan Peace Talks End Inconclusively

Taliban Insist on Recognition of Emirate and Emir



by Omar Samad

WASHINGTON - March 9, 2000 - (AAR) - The first round of peace talks sponsored by the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) to resolve the Afghan conflict ended with no apparent breakthrough in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday evening. But the two opposing Afghan sides - the Taliban (also known as the Islamic Emirate) and the United Front (representing the UN-recognized Islamic State of Afghanistan) - whose representatives did not meet face-to-face, agreed to attend a second round of talks after the Islamic festival of Eid-al-Adha due next week.

Radio BBC reported that the Taliban did not accept unconditional talks proposed by the UF/ISA mission. In a phone interview with AAR late Thursday, acting foreign minister Dr. A. Abdullah, the head of the anti-Taliban delegation, said, “we had differences of opinion.” He added, “the Taliban side insisted on the Emirate, which embodies the Taliban leader Mullah Omar as the Emir of the faithful, and considered that topic as off-limit for discussion .”

“Our proposals centered around two main issues: the peaceful resolution of the conflict in conjunction with granting the right of self-determination to the people through a viable mechanism, such as a Loya Jirga (grand assembly) or the formation of a national transitional government,” said Dr. Abdullah.

According to the BBC, Amir Khan Mutaqi, who headed the Taliban group at the talks, accused the opposition of asking for unconditional negotiations in a bid to re-enter the political scene. The Taliban claim to control about 90% of Afghan territory, but the opposition, ousted from Kabul in 1996, puts the figure closer to 80% and claims to have a strong presence in about 10 provinces, three of which are under its total control. The UF/ISA envoy also pointed to popular discontent with the Taliban regime as underscored by the unwillingness of more than 3 million Afghan refugees in neighboring Pakistan and Iran to return to their homeland.

The 3-day Jeddah meeting attended by Francesc Vendrell, the UN’s special envoy for Afghanistan, Saudi, Pakistani, Iranian and other OIC representatives, is the first OIC-led effort in more than two years to bring the warring factions to the negotiating table. Other UN-sponsored talks have so far failed to convince the Taliban to accept a non-military solution. The Taliban launched the first wave of spring offensives last week, but were forced to retreat from the strategic towns of Sher Khan Bandar and Imam Saheb in Kunduz province following a UF counter-attack which left scores of  fighters dead on both sides.

“The OIC did not officially request a cease-fire, but wished to see a halt to military operations till the next round of talks,” said Dr. Abdullah. “We participated in these talks with seriousness, a flexible approach and sincerity, and our side does not intend to start any operation,” added the UF/ISA envoy. He blamed the Taliban for having started the last round of fighting North of Kabul and in Kunduz.

Dr. Abdullah said that the Taliban delegation also used the Jeddah meetings to defend its dismal record on terrorism, drug production and human rights abuses. He asked for confidence-building measures such as a cease-fire and prisoner exchanges as a starting point for future negotiations.

Other observers believe that the next few days will test the ability and seriousness of the international community to resolve the Afghan crisis. “US President Clinton’s visit to Pakistan and the region can be a rare opportunity to try to exert pressure on the Taliban’s main backer, Pakistan, to bring about positive and real change in its Afghan and pro-Taliban policy,” said an Afghan analyst. /

[Azadi Afghan Radio – 03/09/2000 – 19:00 – azadi@]