Afghanistan’s national security adviser has angrily accused President Trump’s envoy Zalmay Khalilzad of acting against U.S. interests during peace talks with the Taliban.
“We are told that Ambassador Khalilzad is a great diplomat, and he knows what he’s doing,” Hamdullah Mohib said. “I’m not sure I buy that. He is ostracizing, alienating a very trusted ally and partner.”
Speaking to reporters in Washington on Thursday, Mohib complained of being kept in the dark about negotiations. “We don’t have the kind of transparency that we should have,” he said. The brunt of Mohib’s ire was pinned on Khalilzad, U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation, who has met the Taliban multiple times this year to negotiate a peace deal.
He suggested that Khalilzad, a former U.S ambassador to Iraq and to Afghanistan, was acting out of personal ambition. “The perception in Afghanistan, people in the government think that perhaps, perhaps all this talk is to create a caretaker government of which he will then become the viceroy,” he said.
Mohib lamented how the Afghan government only receives “bit and pieces of information” at any given time. “The last people to find out are us,” he said. Although Khalilzad has emphasized that inter-Afghan dialogue is critical to nailing down a peace deal, the Taliban has resisted negotiating with the Afghan government.
The Afghan government was invited to attend recent discussions in the United Arab Emirates with the Taliban and the U.S., but Mohib said Afghan officials were shuttered and barred from participating, forced to wait in hotel lobbies. He also blamed the U.S. delegations for failing to properly brief members of the Afghan government, describing the experience as embarrassing.
The State Department rejected Mohib’s version of events. “Mr. Mohib’s comments are inaccurate and unhelpful, and we will be responding to them privately today,” a State Department representative said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “His comments do not in any way reflect the high level of U.S.-Afghan coordination on all matters involving peace in Afghanistan. It is vital that the Afghans take this opportunity for peace.”
This week, Khalilzad announced that a draft agreement had been secured at the most recent peace discussion with the Taliban in Doha, Qatar. The draft agreement calls for the Taliban to bar al Qaeda or the Islamic State from entering Afghanistan where they could plot against the U.S., and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Removing U.S. troops from Afghanistan has been a top priority for the Taliban.
“It’s clear all sides want to end the war. Despite ups and downs, we kept things on track and made real strides,” Khalilzad tweeted Tuesday. “My next step is discussions in Washington and consultations with other partners,” Khalilzad said. “We will meet again soon, and there is no final agreement until everything is agreed.”
(2/4) Peace requires agreement on four issues: counter-terrorism assurances, troop withdrawal, intra-Afghan dialogue, and a comprehensive ceasefire. In January talks, we “agreed in principle” on these four elements. We’re now “agreed in draft” on the first two.
— U.S. Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad (@US4AfghanPeace) March 12, 2019
