DOHA: Historic peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, where the two warring sides will sit face-to-face for the first time, opened in Doha today.
In his opening remarks during the peace negotiations, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said the negotiations should not get grounded on the idea of winners and losers.
After nearly two decades of war that has killed tens of thousands, it’s for the first time that both parties are sitting across a table for peace talks.
Key speakers at Saturday’s opening ceremony at a hotel in Doha included Abdullah Abdullah, chairperson of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation, Taliban deputy leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
The actual negotiations will start on Monday.
Abdullah Abdullah spoke about the need for seeking a dignified and lasting peace. “I believe that if we give hands to each other and honestly work for peace, the current ongoing misery in the country will end,” he said.
“We want Afghanistan to be an independent, developed country, and it should have a form of Islamic system, where all its citizens see themselves reflected,” Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar said.
No effort spared
Sheikh Mohammed said Qatar would spare no effort in cooperating with the international community to achieve the desired goals of the negotiations and lasting peace in Afghanistan.
“History has taught us over and over that using military force can never resolve the conflict in Afghanistan. The only way to do so is through adopting an immediate and permanent ceasefire and paving the way for a constructive dialogue through negotiations to achieve a comprehensive political settlement across all spectrums in Afghanistan;” he said.
The parties “must make the decisive decision in line with the current challenges and rise above all form of division… by reaching an agreement on the basis of no victor and no vanquished,” he added.