Russia Hosts Afghan Peace Council

On Friday talks opened between the Afghan government and the Taliban in Moscow, in an unprecedented moment where both sides have come together for formal face-to-face talks hosted by the Russian government. 

Following a press conference wherein Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov urged "I am counting on you holding a serious and constructive conversation that will justify the hopes of the Afghan people," the talks commenced behind closed doors.

This is Moscow's first successful attempt to get all sides at the same table as a prior summit was deemed a failure when Afghan government authorities refused to attend. And while Kabul high officials are nowhere present for this week's talks, members of the government-appointed Peace Council are attending the event. Notably, among the dozen nations to send envoys to the event is the United States; however, the US has merely sent a diplomat from the American Embassy in Moscow as an observer. 

The Moscow talks also come at a time when the US is itself holding controversial face-to-face dialogue with the Taliban, such as recent talks between the newly appointed US special envoy for peace in Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, and Taliban representatives in Qatar. 

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Taliban sorted things out with the US in Qatar before going to Moscow.......

Head of the Taliban's political office in Doha Stanakzai Mohammad Abbas has ruled out holding negotiations with the Afghan government before a peace settlement has been reached with the Americans. He was speaking in Moscow on Friday on the sidelines of multilateral peace consultations on Afghanistan.

“This government has come to power under the shadow of the invasion and with some sort of compromise between the Americans and the political parties in Afghanistan,” he said, adding “this government does not represent the people of Afghanistan that's why we deny always direct negotiations with them before we solve the problem with the Americans."

The Taliban representative said that the group’s main aim is “to take these foreign forces out of Afghanistan.” The group has held talks with the American side, during which this goal was voiced, but Abbas admitted that these negotiations are still “in a very initial stage.”

Some analysis: