Afghan president warns against rushing peace process

KABUL, 31 Jan 2019 [Fik/News Sources]: Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani said Monday that Kabul has the key, desire and plan for peace, however, the key for war is in the country lies in Pakistan.

Addressing thousands of youngsters in the capital of Kabul, Ghani said the Taliban is not acknowledging the credibility of the Kabul government and are receiving from “somewhere else” dictation. “The key to war (in Afghanistan) is in Islamabad, Queeta and Rawalpind", he said.

Afghanistan has blamed Pakistan for imposing undeclared war, a charge rejected by Islamabad.

“Where have the Taliban got their credibility from because the esteemed Islamic scholars in Mecca and in Indonesia have declared suicide attacks and killings of civilians as illegitimate,” a charged-up Afghan president said in response to the Taliban’s refusal to talk peace with Kabul.

Details emerging from the Pakistan-sponsored round of talks in Qatar between U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and the Taliban have evidently upset the fragile government in Kabul.

The U.S. envoy is wooing the Taliban to include the Afghan government in talks aimed at ending the 17-year war. The Taliban, however, refuses to recognize the Kabul government.

Ghani warned against rushing through with the fragile peace process. He said peace cannot be achieved behind closed doors.