Taliban absence looms over Bonn meet

[unknownprince]

The Hindu : News / International : Taliban absence looms over Bonn meet

Published: December 4, 2011 23:18 IST | Updated: December 4, 2011 23:44 IST Taliban absence looms over Bonn meet

AFP



International meet on Afghanistan begins today

The Taliban's boycott of the Bonn conference on Afghanistan, 10 years after they were absent from its precursor, raises grave doubts about what progress it can make towards peace, say experts say.
The leaders of the decade-long insurgency will not attend Monday's much-heralded international talks in Germany, saying the meeting will “further ensnare Afghanistan into the flames of occupation”.
Pakistan is also boycotting the event after an air strike by NATO troops stationed in Afghanistan killed 24 Pakistani soldiers last week.
Islamabad is considered key to bringing the Taliban to the negotiating table due to its historic ties to the militia and claims that elements in its military still support the insurgency to offset the might of arch-rival India.
The absence of two major players has dampened expectations of progress on reconciliation among ordinary Afghans as well as officials.
Fazal Rahim, a 37-year-old money exchanger in Kabul, said: “The Afghan government and the international backers should encourage the Taliban to take part in this conference because the Taliban are part of this land and without their participation, the Bonn conference will not give positive results.”
Their non-attendance also risks making Bonn part of what Britain's former Ambassador to Kabul, Sherard Cowper-Coles, called the “charade” of international conferences on Afghanistan, dogged by “diplomacy for diplomacy's sake”.
Violence
NATO and the U.N. may dispute whether violence is up or down in Afghanistan, but a string of high-profile attacks on Western and government targets in Kabul has fed perceptions that security is declining. “What everybody expects is to find ways to bring security and stability to Afghanistan,” said Ahmad Wali, a 29-year-old economics student in the city.
With foreign capitals determined to withdraw combat troops by the end of 2014, Western diplomats in Kabul earlier this year talked up the possibility of the Taliban attending Bonn as part of a single Afghan delegation.
But such hopes came crashing down after tentative contacts collapsed and the assassination of President Hamid Karzai's peace envoy, Burhanuddin Rabbani blamed on the Taliban — derailed any prospects of progress.
Diplomats now say the West's relationship with Afghanistan after 2014 and the transition to Afghan control will dominate the conference agenda. “I'm not expecting a huge amount on reconciliation,” Britain's Ambassador to Kabul William Patey told reporters.
“I'm not expecting much other than an affirmation that the Afghan government, supported by the international community, stands ready to talk peace and reconciliation with the Taliban when and if they're ready.”
Another Western diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, was more blunt. “Nothing will happen at Bonn regarding the Taliban,” he said.
Expectations
Organisers are playing down expectations that the conference will rival one exactly 10 years ago which established an interim administration led by Karzai and mapped out a roadmap for elections.
Soon after that conference, the Taliban surrendered Kandahar, their heartland and last major Afghan stronghold, on December 7, 2001.
Keywords: Bonn conference, Afghanistan, Taliban

[Soldat_Amir]

Its quite odd seeing both Taliban and Pakistan not attend the bonn meeting.

Father like son.

[Shehbaz Khan]

^ Did they approach the Talibans?

Pakistan had it's own reservations of the NATO strike !! That's it !!

[randolph85]

americans talk peace but refuse to allow the taliban to join the bonn talks, the taliban defuse to join bonn because they know they won't be invited in the first place.

america is bipolar about peace, and the taliban want to save face.

[unknownprince]

americans talk peace but refuse to allow the taliban to join the bonn talks, the taliban defuse to join bonn because they know they won't be invited in the first place.

america is bipolar about peace, and the taliban want to save face.

It is doubtful that the Taliban wanted to attend the Bonn talks.

US rejection of Taliban participation at Bonn was due to Taliban's refusal to participate at Bonn.

Germany, to the last minute was hoping the Taliban would send some sort of delegation, but it appears that did not happen.

German FM leaves open Taliban invitation for Afghan conference

http://article.wn.com/view/2011/11/27/Germany_backs_Taliban_talks_in_Afghanistan/

[randolph85]

It is doubtful that the Taliban wanted to attend the Bonn talks.

US rejection of Taliban participation at Bonn was due to Taliban's refusal to participate at Bonn.

Germany, to the last minute was hoping the Taliban would send some sort of delegation, but it appears that did not happen.

German FM leaves open Taliban invitation for Afghan conference

http://article.wn.com/view/2011/11/2...n_Afghanistan/

Subscription required | Pajhwok Afghan News

KABUL (PAN): Former Afghan ambassador to Pakistan, Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef, on Monday said the 2nd Bonn Conference would have been a success if the Taliban had been invited to participate.
The first Bonn Conference, held soon after the ouster of the Taliban regime, had been imposed on the country, he recalled. As a result of that meeting, a puppet government was set up in Kabul, Zaeef recalled.
He insisted the conferees' approval of the Karzai-led transitional authority and the conduct of presidential and parliamentary elections was a mistake.
"The Afghan delegation may represent a majority of Afghans, but not the whole country," the ex-ambassador said in an exclusive interview with Pajhwok Afghan News.
One of the major obstacles to Taliban's participation was that the conference was chaired by the Afghan government, which the insurgents did not recognise as a legitimate authority, he remarked.
Another hurdle was the absence of Taliban's address, according to Zaeef, who said the impediments should have been removed prior to the meeting.
The gathering, being attended by representatives from more than 115 countries and international organisations, was opened by President Hamid Karzai and German Chancellor Angela Merkel at 9am (German time).
Global political, economic and military assistance to Afghanistan beyond 2014, security transition, strategic cooperation, regional cooperation and the reconciliation process are high on the agenda for the major meeting.
Zaeef said: "The result will become known with the passage of time. In my opinion, this conference was a renewal of the 2001 Bonn talk.,"
Hailing from the Panjwayee district of southern Kandahar province, the former diplomat said he would have taken part if he had been given the opportunity to speak his mind on the current state of affairs in the country.
"Participation in conferences which take decisions of national importance needs courage and patience. Since I don't represent any party, I can't participate," he remarked. "I also received calls for participation under the government. I rejected the calls because I don’t want to be influenced by the government or any other organisation."
About Pakistan's boycott, he said, the neighbouring country could play a crucial role in bringing peace to Afghanistan. Its absence was a setback that could have a negative impact on its strategic ties to the US, he felt.
On November 29 Islamabad announced it would not attend the important meeting in Germany as a mark of protest over ISAF airstrikes on border checkpoints that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.
The attack dealt a serious blow to the already strained relations between Islamabad and Washington. Subsequently, Pakistan lodged a strong protest with the US and the NATO headquarters in Brussels over the "unprovoked" attack.

[unknownprince]

Subscription required | Pajhwok Afghan News

KABUL (PAN): Former Afghan ambassador to Pakistan, Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef, on Monday said the 2nd Bonn Conference would have been a success if the Taliban had been invited to participate.
The first Bonn Conference, held soon after the ouster of the Taliban regime, had been imposed on the country, he recalled. As a result of that meeting, a puppet government was set up in Kabul, Zaeef recalled.
He insisted the conferees' approval of the Karzai-led transitional authority and the conduct of presidential and parliamentary elections was a mistake.
"The Afghan delegation may represent a majority of Afghans, but not the whole country," the ex-ambassador said in an exclusive interview with Pajhwok Afghan News.
One of the major obstacles to Taliban's participation was that the conference was chaired by the Afghan government, which the insurgents did not recognise as a legitimate authority, he remarked.
Another hurdle was the absence of Taliban's address, according to Zaeef, who said the impediments should have been removed prior to the meeting.
The gathering, being attended by representatives from more than 115 countries and international organisations, was opened by President Hamid Karzai and German Chancellor Angela Merkel at 9am (German time).
Global political, economic and military assistance to Afghanistan beyond 2014, security transition, strategic cooperation, regional cooperation and the reconciliation process are high on the agenda for the major meeting.
Zaeef said: "The result will become known with the passage of time. In my opinion, this conference was a renewal of the 2001 Bonn talk.,"
Hailing from the Panjwayee district of southern Kandahar province, the former diplomat said he would have taken part if he had been given the opportunity to speak his mind on the current state of affairs in the country.
"Participation in conferences which take decisions of national importance needs courage and patience. Since I don't represent any party, I can't participate," he remarked. "I also received calls for participation under the government. I rejected the calls because I don’t want to be influenced by the government or any other organisation."
About Pakistan's boycott, he said, the neighbouring country could play a crucial role in bringing peace to Afghanistan. Its absence was a setback that could have a negative impact on its strategic ties to the US, he felt.
On November 29 Islamabad announced it would not attend the important meeting in Germany as a mark of protest over ISAF airstrikes on border checkpoints that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.
The attack dealt a serious blow to the already strained relations between Islamabad and Washington. Subsequently, Pakistan lodged a strong protest with the US and the NATO headquarters in Brussels over the "unprovoked" attack.

It is true that if there are no talks of the problem which is the US occupation, and if there are no talks with other major actors in this conflict such as the Taliban, then the Bonn conference is a mere charade, a farce, a simple waste of money and time. Unless, there is recognition and admission that the US presence is the obstacle to peace, nothing will be accomplished.

Most of what is stated above is an accurate reflection of the problems.


Mullah Zaeef is the former Taliban ambassador to Pakistan.

With the absence of the Taliban, this Bonn conference was a failure from the start.

[Leonine]

i thought it was haram for taliban to come to bonn....

[unknownprince]

Furthermore, the only way there will be peace in Afghanistan is with the end of the US presence. This is the obstacle to peace within Afghanistan and the entire region.

Any talks would have to resolve this issue.

The US presence is the barrier to peace and stability in Afghanistan, and proper and meaningful talks would have to accept this. There will be no peace as long as there is a foreign occupation.

So, talks like the Istanbul summit, Bonn are just theatrics.

If anything came close to pushing forward a meaningful solution to Afghanistan, it would have been the SCO summit about a month ago.

[unknownprince]

Bonn conference is mere theatrics. Without talks with the Taliban (direct talks) to end the war with the Taliban, meaning talks for stabilization and US withdrawal, there will be no peace in Afghanistan. Thats it. All the other baloney Karzai sputters is to distract others from the mere fact that his request for talks with the Taliban were never in good faith since he wishes to have a US occupation, and nor were the US intentions for talks with the Taliban and other opposition groups in good faith. Why would the Taliban want to talk?

There will be no peace in Afghanistan for as long as there is a US occupation. This is the only issue at hand. The US presence is the reason there is fighting all over Afghanistan. Peace in Afghanistan can only be brought internally by Afghans with the help of regional nations.

The problems of Afghanistan have to be resolved internally through a series of regional conferences involving all valid Afghan parties, excluding those propped up by the US, and not including Western expatriate types like Hamid Karzai, Rangin Spanta, and Ashraf Ghani who hold citizenships elsewhere and whose families and "wealth" reside outside of Afghanistan. Such people do not have Afghan interests at heart.

Without direct talks with the Taliban, and its leadership and other "insurgent" groups for US withdrawal, there will be no peace. The single obstacle to peace and stability within Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the rest of the region is the US presence.

So, Bonn conference is either going to be a farce, or if there is a realization that the key to Afghan peace is the complete US withdrawal, it will be a success.

http://www.pashtunforums.com/political-talk-11/bonn-conference-discussion-24249/

[randolph85]

the US occupation is only one barrier to peace in afghanistan, besides neighboring countries. if afghans stop fighting each other, there will be no influence from others to play one group against the other.

there was no US occupation, or even political influence in the mid 90s, but thats when there was the most lawlessness. the US is a scapegoat of afghan problems, that are pretty much all afghan made.

[unknownprince]

[QUOTE]

the US occupation is only one barrier to peace in afghanistan, besides neighboring countries.

It is no news that some regional nations may have convergent interests, but this is an irrelevant point. No one can force anyone to fight. The US occupation is the only reason people fight.

if afghans stop fighting each other, there will be no influence from others to play one group against the other.

Again, no one can force anyone to fight. Convergent interests have no bearing on the immediate and internal unrest in Afghanistan. The US occupation does. If there was no US occupation, the chances of stability would increase significantly. Recall, that the Taliban had controlled the majority of Afghanistan prior to 2002, and had one last area of fighting where the Northern Alliance had retreated to. Stability and order had been brought to much of the country aside from the small pockets of Northern Alliance areas.

there was no US occupation, or even political influence in the mid 90s, but thats when there was the most lawlessness. the US is a scapegoat of afghan problems, that are pretty much all afghan made.

The Militant Communists are directly to blame for the scenario that brought the reaction and the start of the Mujahideen movement. The evidence for this is detailed in these two threads rather extensively. http://www.pashtunforums.com/politic...98/index5.html

http://www.pashtunforums.com/political-talk-11/who-assasinated-daud-khan-22983/

After the Soviets were defeated, as you correctly mentioned, Afghan infighting/civil war resulted in lawlessness, crime, and chaos which all together brought about the rise of the Taliban.

In regards to the Taliban, they were a movement/phenomenon that arose after the defeat of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. They did not exist formally prior to that, and were a reaction to the chaos and infighting between the different Mujahideen groups. There was a lot of crime, and people wanted order. The below documentary while biased to some degree, gives a fairly accurate account of the specific events that gave rise to the Taliban, and why they are back again. Start listening at 5:10 I am sure you know the rest of the story, and it need not be repeated here over and over again. Mullah Zaeef gives an accurate account on the situation that brought the rise of the Taliban.

Inside the Taliban 03 - N.G. - YouTube