ISLAMABAD/KABUL: International troops plan to stay in Afghanistan beyond the May deadline envisaged by the Taliban’s deal with the United States, four senior Nato officials said, a move that could escalate tensions with the Taliban demanding full withdrawal.
“There will be no full withdrawal by allies by April-end,” one of the officials said.
In another worrying development, a member of the Afghan government’s negotiating team on Sunday warned the Taliban that if they didn’t resume stalled peace talks in Qatar soon, the government could recall the team before a deal is reached.
“Conditions have not been met,” said the Nato official on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. “And with the new US administration, there will be tweaks in the policy, the sense of hasty withdrawal which was prevalent will be addressed and we could see a much more calculated exit strategy.”
The administration of former president Donald Trump signed an agreement with the Taliban early last year calling for the withdrawal of all foreign troops by May in return for the insurgents fulfilling certain security guarantees.
Trump hailed the accord, which did not include the Afghan government, as the end of two decades of war. He reduced US troops to 2,500 by this month, the fewest since 2001.
Plans on what will happen after April are now being considered and likely to be a top issue at a key Nato meeting in February, the Nato sources said.
The position of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation is becoming increasingly important after the alliance was sidelined by Trump, diplomats and experts say.
Peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban began in September in Doha, but violence has remained high.
Nato spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said the final decision about troop withdrawal had not been made yet, adding that the February meeting of Nato defence ministers could not be preempted. “Allies continue to assess the overall situation and to consult on the way forward.”
Around 10,000 troops, including Americans, are in Afghanistan, Lungescu said.
The Nato source said troop levels were expected to stay roughly the same until after May, but the plan beyond that was not clear.
The administration of Joe Biden, who replaced Trump on Jan 20, has launched a review of his predecessor’s peace agreement.
A Pentagon spokesman said the Taliban had not met their commitments but Washington remained committed to the process and had not decided on future troop levels.
Meanwhile, the Taliban have become increasingly concerned in recent weeks about the possibility that Washington might change aspects of the agreement and keep troops in the country beyond May, two Taliban sources said.
“We conveyed our apprehensions, but they assured us of honouring and acting on the Doha accord. What’s going on, on the ground in Afghanistan, is showing something else. And that’s why we decided to send our delegations to take our allies into confidence,” said a Taliban leader in Doha.
A Taliban delegation this week visited Iran and Russia, and the leader said they were contacting China.
Although informal meetings have been taking place between negotiators in Doha, progress has stalled in recent weeks after an almost one-month break, according to negotiators and diplomats.
Published in Dawn, February 1st, 2021