Despite a Taliban attack outside the Afghan presidential palace on Tuesday, Presidents Barack Obama and Hamid Karzai have in consultations by video conference “reaffirmed” their support for reconciliation talks the Taliban in Qatar.
“The leaders reaffirmed that an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace and reconciliation process is the surest way to end violence and ensure lasting stability in Afghanistan and the region,” a White House statement said later. “They reiterated their support for an office in Doha for the purpose of negotiations between the High Peace Council and authorised representatives of the Taliban,” the statement added.
Karzai, who had broken off security talks with the US last week in protest against what he regarded as a personal slight and the long handle given to the Taliban, dropped his objections after Secretary of State John Kerry reassured him that the reconciliation exercise would be an “Afghan-led and Afghan-owned” process.
Obama and Karzai also held discussion on several other issues, including the transition of operational lead from coalition to Afghan security forces earlier this month, the importance of Afghan-led reconciliation efforts, preparations for Afghanistan’s 2014 elections, and the negotiation of a Bilateral Security Agreement.
“Specifically, the President welcomed the passage on June 18th of milestone 2013, which the two leaders agreed to during their January summit in Washington as the point at which Afghan security forces would take the lead for operations countrywide,” the White House said.