Taliban hits back at Pompeo, accuses US of delaying peace process

Afghanistan’s Taliban accused the United States of hampering peace process after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had claimed that the Taliban weren’t able to demonstrate either their will or their capacity to reduce violence in the region. Pompeo, during his visit to Uzbekistan, had demanded “demonstrable evidence” from the Taliban to show will and capacity to reduce violence.

“In the end, all Afghans will have to resolve that they want peace and stability for their own country as well. That’s certainly the Taliban, but it’s others, too,” said the US diplomat while speaking to the reporters.

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement that the issues were from American end and asked Pompeo to not shift the blame. He said that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), or the Taliban, has the intention and capacity for a resolution and added that the negotiation process was harmed by US President Donald Trump’s tweet, his numerous demands and quarrel between US and Afghan officials.

“Our stance in principled & concerted - unlike them,” tweeted Zabihullah.

Read: US Demands More From Taliban On Ceasefire Before Deal

Jump in violent attacks

Despite continued efforts to arrive at a peace plan, violent attacks in Afghanistan jumped to record levels in the last quarter, a US watchdog had said in its report. In its quarterly report, the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) told US Congress that ‘enemy-initiated attacks’ rose to 8,204 attacks, up from 6,974 in the same period in 2018.

Read: US Steps Up Deadly Airstrikes, During Taliban Peace Talks

SIGAR Sopko said that it is not clear whether the US and its coalition partners have helped create an Afghan police force capable of “post-peace policing” or not. He opined that Afghan people and Afghanistan’s international partners would certainly welcome a peace agreement but such agreement could lead to challenges for the reconstruction efforts made over the past 18 years by the US, coalition partners and the Afghan government.

“More than two million Afghans residing in Pakistan could return after a peace settlement, potentially because of political pressure from the Pakistani government,” said SIGAR.

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