His comments come a day after the Taliban refused to hold direct peace talks with the Afghan government, dealing a blow to worldwide efforts to revive long-stalled negotiations aimed at ending the deadly 14-year insurgency.
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Islamabad, Mar.6: The peace talks between Afghanistan and the Taliban ran into trouble as the main faction of the insurgent group denied its plans to join the process besides questioning its efficacy.
“No one has been tasked by our leader to attend the meeting nor has the leadership council decided on the participation of the meeting”, Zabihullah Mujahed, a Taliban spokesman, said in an e-mailed statement.
Afghan security analysts believe Taliban fighters have expanded their fighting from their Pashtun-dominated areas in the south and the east to the northern parts of the country.
ISIS had set up its presence in Afghanistan for over a year.
Obama also “underscored U.S. support for a peace process that reduces violence and ensures lasting stability in Afghanistan and the region”, the White House said in a statement.
Diplomats from Afghanistan China Pakistan and the USA who have organized the talks had hoped the conference would begin the first week in March.
Bygone the days when Afghan Taliban were in the pockets of Foreign Office of Pakistan. The pace of USA troop withdrawals from Afghanistan will be at the center of Ghanis visit to Washington, yet Americas exit from the war remains tightly hinged to the abilities of the Afghan forces that face a tough fight against insurgents this spring.
After conversations in Kabul on February 23, the Afghan government sent out a news release noting President Ashraf Ghani’s “strong commitment … for peace and reconciliation with Taliban groups and Hezbi Islami Hekmatyar”, the latter being another nationalist militant group. It added that fresh American forces have deployed to the battlefield and that Afghan forces have also intensified their operations.
And the Taliban have been battling Afghan forces in Helmand province, with Afghan forces last month withdrawing from certain districts there despite complaints from local leaders.
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Many suspect that Taliban could reappear on the negotiating table as factional infighting and leadership division has deepened in the group since the death of Omar.
