KABUL: Afghan Taliban representatives and US officials met in the UAE on Monday, amid diplomatic moves toward establishing the basis for talks to end the 17-year war in Afghanistan.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said representatives from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the UAE would also take part in the talks, which follow at least two meetings between Taliban officials and US special peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad in Qatar. He said the talks had begun and could take some time.
Diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict have intensified, although the Taliban have refused to deal directly with the internationally recognized government in Kabul, which it considers an illegitimate foreign-imposed regime.
The Taliban, who were overthrown in 2001, say the presence of international forces in Afghanistan is the main obstacle to peace. Even as the peace process gathers momentum, fighting has continued with heavy casualties on both sides.
Although the Afghan government has not taken part directly in the talks, a team from Kabul met US and Saudi officials in the UAE on Sunday, President Ashraf Ghani’s national security adviser, Hamdullah Mohib, said.
Ghani has formed a team to negotiate peace with the Taliban but the movement said on Monday that senior members had no plans to meet the representatives of the Afghan government in the UAE.
“The talks in UAE will happen with the US envoy in the presence of representatives of some other countries,” Mujahid said.
As well as establishing direct contacts with the Taliban, US officials have stepped up efforts to win support from countries with an interest in Afghanistan, including Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.
Relations between Washington and Islamabad have long been strained over accusations that Pakistan supports insurgent groups in Afghanistan, a charge it denies. But earlier this month, US President Donald Trump requested Pakistan’s support to advance the Afghan peace process.
Senior members of the Taliban in Afghanistan said the talks would continue for three days. Taliban officials from the movement’s political headquarters in Qatar and two representatives sent by Mullah Yaqub, elder son of the Taliban’s late founder Mullah Mohammad Omar, will be present.
Afghan Taliban meet US officials in UAE
Afghan Taliban meet US officials in UAE
- The meetings come as diplomatic efforts to resolve the Afghan conflict have intensified
- The Taliban say the presence of international forces in Afghanistan is the main obstacle to peace
Kyrgyzstan parliament speaker resigns after spy chief sacking
- Japarov is seeking re-election next year in a country that was once a regional leader in terms of openness
BISHKEK: Kyrgyzstan’s parliament speaker said Thursday he would step down, two days after President Sadyr Japarov dismissed the Central Asian country’s powerful secret service chief and arrested political figures who called for early elections.
In a surprise move, Japarov had sacked his one-time close ally — spy chief Kamchybek Tashiev — in a decision Bishkek said was meant to “prevent division in society.”
Japarov is seeking re-election next year in a country that was once a regional leader in terms of openness, though marked by political volatility.
Rights groups have accused him of authoritarian tendencies, as he seeks to assert his control and cast himself as a bringer of stability.
Speaker Nurlanbek Turgunbek uulu — close to the sacked security boss — told MPs he would step down, insisting that he was not resigning under pressure.
“Reforms initiated by the president must be carried out. Political stability is indispensable,” he said.
Kyrgyzstan has in recent years been de-facto governed by the Japarov-Tashiev tandem.
Both came to power in the wake of the 2020 revolution — the third since Bishkek gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Several NGOs have in recent months denounced the deterioration of freedom of expression in Kyrgyzstan.
Japarov had unexpectedly sacked Tashiev and three of his deputies on Tuesday, also weakening the powers of the secret services.
Japarov rarely speaks publicly. His spokesman had said the decision was taken “in the interests of the state, with the aim of preventing divisions within society, including between government structures, and to strengthen unity.”
Tashiev was in Germany for health treatment when the sacking was announced and had said it was a “total surprise” to him.
The decision came the day after the publication of an open letter from 75 political figures and ex-officials calling to bring forward presidential elections — scheduled for January 2027.
Five of those who signed the letter — which criticized the economic situation in the country — were arrested Wednesday on charges of organizing mass riots.
