American officials said intelligence shows that the Taliban does not intend to follow the strictures of the recently signed peace deal.
Officials who had seen the persuasive intelligence spoke with NBC News and acknowledged that it is likely the terrorist group will use the deal to get American forces to pull out with the end goal of retaking the country from the Afghan government, which is backed by the United States.
“They have no intention of abiding by their agreement,” one official said.
They said that current intelligence is in line with what Taliban representatives in Pakistan have been alleging, which is that the peace deal, signed Feb. 29 by U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban political chief Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, is a means to an end.
“We will ask the Afghan leadership and other political factions that since the U.S. has accepted us and recognized our position, it is time for you to accept us and give us the country peacefully,” a Taliban member said.
Another U.S. official said that there was “hope” that the Taliban would follow through with its end of the bargain, “but we believe we know their true intentions.”
President Trump acknowledged Friday that the militant group could “possibly” seize power from the Afghan government once American forces withdraw.
“Countries have to take care of themselves,” Trump said at the White House. “You can only hold someone’s hand for so long.” The president was asked if there is a chance the Taliban could retake control, and he responded that it is “not supposed to happen that way, but it possibly will.”
Since the agreement was inked, the Taliban has resumed attacks against the Afghan government, which is itself emerging from a fractious election that incumbent President Ashraf Ghani won, according to the Independent Election Commission.
The agreement commits to a full withdrawal by U.S. forces in 14 months if conditions are met, though one sticking point to inter-Afghan talks between the groups is that Ghani’s government has refused to release 5,000 Taliban militants. The Taliban has said doing so would be contingent upon moving forward with the peace plan.
“The people of Afghanistan need to believe that we’ve gone from war to peace, and not that the agreement will be either a Trojan horse or the beginning of a much worse phase of conflict,” Ghani said.
American lawmakers have also expressed concerns about assurances that the Taliban would not harbor groups like al Qaeda. Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida said he thinks it is likely that the Taliban will take back over after the U.S. withdraws.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Thursday that despite the more than 70 Taliban attacks against the Afghan government since the agreement was signed, “We still have confidence the Taliban leadership is working to deliver on its commitments.”
He also said the deal won’t continue if Taliban forces renege on their promises.
“We know that the road ahead will be difficult,” Pompeo said. “We expected it. We were right.”
“The upsurge in violence in parts of Afghanistan over the last couple days is unacceptable,” he continued. “In no uncertain terms, violence must be reduced immediately for the peace process to move forward.”
