US-Taliban Agreement

After nearly two decades of the Afghanistan conflict, the United States of America and the
militant group based in Afghanistan, Taliban have signed a historic peace agreement on 29 th
February 2020 in Doha, Qatar. With the objective to end the long-running war in
Afghanistan, the USA and the NATO allies have agreed to withdraw their troops from the
soil of Afghanistan within fourteen months if the Taliban sticks to the deal. Under the
agreement, the Taliban have agreed not to allow extremist groups like Al-Qaeda to operate
from the Afghan’s soil. But, the main question is whether the agreement will be able to bring
peace and stability in the war-torn Afghanistan or not.

A Brief History of the Afghanistan War

The Afghanistan has been suffering from war and conflicts for more than four decades.

After a coup in 1979, the former USSR invaded Afghanistan to fight against a US, China,
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia supported resistance movement called Mujahideen, and to support
communist government in Afghanistan. After the withdrawal of Soviet troops in 1989, a civil
war broke out in Afghanistan.

In the chaotic situation that followed, Taliban, which means ‘students’ in Pashto language,
rose to prominence in 1994 in the south-west Afghanistan. After taking control of capital
Kabul in 1996, Taliban enforced a severe version of Sharia law, which introduced harsh
punishments. It banned television, cinema and music. It also banned girls’ education. Taliban
had made it mandatory for men to grow beard and for women to wear burka. Taliban also
gave shelter to militant groups in Afghanistan.

On 11 September 2001, an Afghanistan based terror group Al-Qaeda attacked America and
killed around 3,000 people. Al-Qaeda’s head Osama Bin Laden was held responsible for the
attacks. Taliban refused to hand over Bin Laden to America.

In retaliation of 9/11 attacks, the then US President George W Bush announced air strikes
against Afghanistan on 7 October 2001. The air strikes targeted military sites belonging to
Taliban and training camps of Al-Qaeda. As a result of attacks by the USA and its allies,
Taliban regime collapsed and eventually its leaders fled to Pakistan.
In 2004, a new government backed by USA took control over Afghanistan. But, the Taliban
remained on the back-foot and continued drug trade and mining in areas around the Pakistan
border. Eventually, Taliban re-energised and continued suicide attacks and posed threats.

In 2014, end of the combat mission of some of the NATO forces in Afghanistan, gave the
Taliban momentum and they seized territory. Taliban became active across 70% of
Afghanistan and posed threats by bombing government and civilian targets.

The US and Taliban war has lasted for more than two decades now. The main reasons for the
war to last this long are lack of political clarity after the US invasion, ineffectiveness of the
US strategy, fierce Taliban resistance, limitations of Afghan forces and government,
reluctance of NATO allies to keep their forces for longer in Afghanistan, and increase in
violence by militants, which led to some of the bloodiest attacks in the history of humankind
in Afghanistan.

The US-Taliban Agreement

The USA and the Taliban have signed an agreement to end more than 18 years of conflict and
to bring peace in Afghanistan. The agreement was signed by Zalmay Khalilzad, US
ambassador to Afghanistan, and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Political Chief of Taliban, on
29 February 2020 in Doha, Qatar. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo acted as a witness of
the signing of the agreement and he urged Taliban to keep their promise. Qatar played a
central role in the negotiation and signing of the agreement in its capital Doha.

Under the agreement, the US and NATO allies have agreed to withdraw their troops
completely from the soil of Afghanistan. Under the agreement, Taliban agreed not to allow
Al-Qaeda and other extremist groups to operate from their soil and threaten America. Taliban
also agreed to negotiate a deal with the Afghan government by 10th March 2020, leading to a
permanent and comprehensive ceasefire.

According to the US President Donald Trump, after a long and hard journey in Afghanistan,
it is time to bring the troop back home. President Trump further said that the American troops
had been killing terrorists in Afghanistan and now it is time for Taliban to do this job.

The agreement also includes the reduction of US forces in Afghanistan to 8,600 within the
first 135 days. The agreement also provides for exchange of 5,000 Taliban prisoners and
1,000 Afghan security force prisoners by 10 th March 2020. The USA is also supposed to lift
sanctions against the Taliban and ask the United Nations to lift its separate sanctions against
the group.

The agreement does not include the Afghanistan government.

Prospects for Peace & Stability in Afghanistan

After nearly two decades of the US-Taliban conflict, the agreement recently signed between
the US and the Taliban raises hope for peace and stability in the war-torn Afghanistan. The
agreement seems to be a major step in the peace process, which aims at ending the America’s
longest war.

In the Kunduz City of Afghanistan, people celebrated the signing of this agreement by taking
part in peace rally. People fluttered Afghan flags and played patriotic songs. People showed
their hope for the reduction in violence. People also showed caution as they have seen false
dawns before. They said that after the US took control in 2001, people hoped that the country
would prosper but, instead, they found themselves caught in a war in which thousands of
Afghans have died. As the only alternative is unending war, many Afghans are ready to take
this risk for peace, despite deep uncertainty over where it will lead.

On the other hand, some Afghans considered the day of signing of the agreement to be the
darkest in the history of Afghanistan. They showed concern over the rights and education of
women. People are sceptical about the agreement as it is uncertain as to what cost
Afghanistan will have to pay after the withdrawal of the US troops. It is also not certain
whether the Taliban will accept the democracy in the country. People are also afraid whether
the Taliban will repeat the history of its brutal ruling.

As the US will withdraw its troops with or without a proper negotiation between the Taliban
and the Afghan government regarding administration, the agreement can lead to a political
turmoil in Afghanistan. Both the Taliban and the Afghan government will try to dominate
each other as both consider themselves the legitimate rulers of the country. Also, the
Taliban’s doctrines are incompatible with modernity, democracy and the rights of women;
and it has a horrible history of misogyny, violence, barbarity and self-righteousness. And, the
ruling Ashraf Ghani government had no say in the agreement.

Also, the agreement does not contain anything regarding the end of violence by the Taliban
against the people or the government of Afghanistan. Furthermore, the Taliban are too
decentralized a group to control itself, and there is limited capacity for them to control
violence. Also, the agreement does not provide for the protection of women’s rights and
democracy. As per the agreement, the US will return to Afghanistan if the Taliban violates
the terms of the agreement. That will only result in violence and death of Afghans over the
failed experiment of making peace.

Still, there is hope for peace and stability in Afghanistan. The Taliban and the Ashraf Ghani
government should not try to control each other and accept each other’s legitimacy. The
foreign forces and the UN should act as watchdog of peace in Afghanistan. Human rights,
gender rights, religious rights and elections should be part of Afghanistan’s future political
structure, and Taliban should not be allowed to rule brutally. Peace accord should be signed
between Taliban and Afghan’s security forces.

As the only other alternative is long war and suffering, the US-Taliban agreement is the only
hope for peace and stability, despite its uncertainties and scepticism.