September 17, 2020
The Taliban’s spokesman Mohammad Naeem has said that the group will not agree to a ceasefire unless the peace negotiators can discuss the main cause of the war in the country at the peace negotiating table.
He claimed that the Taliban has reduced the level of violence with the start of the preliminary round of the talks.
He also claimed that the Afghan government has not halted its offensive operations.
“It does not make sense to end 20 years of war in one hour. In our perspective, it will be logical to discuss the main aspects of the problems and the war and then finalize a ceasefire so that the problem is resolved permanently,” Mohammad Naeem told TOLOnews’ Karim Amini in Doha.
“Suppose, if we announce a ceasefire today, but then we fail to reach an agreement at the negotiating table tomorrow, do we go toward the war again? What does this mean?” he said.
He said that the Taliban wants the establishment of an Islamic system in which the values of people of the country are reflected.
“One of our objectives was to end the invasion of Afghanistan, the other one was that there is a true Islamic system that is answerable to the public and the nation,” he said.
He said that the peace negotiation talks between Afghans will have some ups and downs. But said that he was optimistic about the outcomes of the talks.
“We have entered the peace process with a strong will and determination, we want this problem finally to be resolved. The process is complicated and it has its own complexities, but we are hopeful that the problems come to an end,” added Naeem.
Five days have passed since the opening ceremony of the intra-Afghan talks between the delegation representing the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Taliban in Doha. But the two sides so far have not managed to finalize the procedures and methods for conducting the formal negotiations.
Courtesy: TOLO News
