Ayaz Gul VOA News April 16, 2018 ISLAMABAD — The Taliban has ruled out political reconciliation with the Afghan government and urged war-weary voters to boycott upcoming parliamentary elections in the country, alleging the “fake” exercise is being staged at the behest of U.S.-led “foreign occupation” forces. The statement comes in response to President Ashraf Ghani’s
Michael Hughes: The recent torching of two schools may signal that extremist militants want to kill any hopes of reviving a dead intra-Afghan reconciliation process. While “mainstream” elements of the Taliban have allegedly refrained from targeting schools it is doubtful one will hear public condemnations of the attacks emanating from their leadership anytime soon. Moreover, the
Mohammad Habibzada VOA News / April 15, 2018 Focusing on Pakistani hardline religious scholars, Afghanistan is in the process of convening an international religious conference in a bid to find a peaceful solution to the conflict in the county, the Afghan High Peace Council (HPC) said. The HPC told VOA it is very important that
VOA News April 7, 2018 The grass-roots call for peace by some residents that began as a sit-in in Afghanistan’s restive Helmand province is gathering momentum and spreading to other provinces of the country. A car bomb explosion March 23 in the nation’s southern region, near a packed sports stadium in the provincial capital of
Ayaz Gul VOA News April 7, 2018 ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s prime minister, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, has said his official meetings with leaders in Afghanistan in the past week have helped narrow a mutual “trust deficit” and the visit will prove to be a “milestone” in promoting regional peace. Abbasi undertook a day-long visit to Kabul on
Ayaz Gul VOA News April 4, 2018 ISLAMABAD — Pakistan and Russia have been able to “transcend” their history of mistrust and rivalry, leading to a rapid improvement and expansion in bilateral political, military and economic ties, says Pakistani Defense Minister Khurram Dastgir. The minister, currently attending an international security conference in Moscow, told VOA prior
Hasib Danish Alikozai VOA News March 28, 2018 WASHINGTON — Uzbekistan on Tuesday hosted an international conference on Afghanistan and offered to host peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in an effort to help end more than 16 years of war in the country. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev told senior diplomats from regional as
RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service March 27, 2018 Following talks in Uzbekistan, more than 20 countries and organizations have declared their support for direct talks between the Kabul government and the Taliban to end the 16-year conflict in Afghanistan. A joint declaration issued at the end of the March 27 meeting in the Uzbek capital, Tashkent, noted the signatories’
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty March 25, 2018 A senior U.S. diplomat is due to arrive in Uzbekistan on March 25 for a three-day visit for talks with Uzbek leaders and to attend an international peace conference on Afghanistan. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas Shannon will attend the Tashkent conference on Afghanistan on March
Jeff Seldin VOA News March 22, 2018 WASHINGTON — Top Afghan officials see a genuine chance for peace with elements of the Taliban and the Haqqani network but worry the latest effort at reconciliation could be undermined, both by internal rivals and by Pakistan and other foreign influences. Afghan officials believe those insurgent leaders who seek