Abdullah Abdullah, the chairman of Afghanistan's High Council for National Reconciliation who leads the government's delegation during the intra-Afghan talks in Doha, thanked the Taliban movement for agreeing to negotiate with the Kabul administration and said that now was the time to end the 40-years conflict
KABUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2020) Abdullah Abdullah, the chairman of Afghanistan's High Council for National Reconciliation who leads the government's delegation during the intra-Afghan talks in Doha, thanked the Taliban movement for agreeing to negotiate with the Kabul administration and said that now was the time to end the 40-years conflict.
"Welcome to all of you who have come together for Afghan peace. I am speaking here on behalf or as a representative of the President of Afghanistan [Ashraf Ghani]. I thank the Taliban for agreeing to the talks to the Afghan government. Today is the day to discuss ending the war, ending the pain of Afghans. We have come together to end the 40-years war to end political violence with the Taliban," Abdullah told reporters before the start of negotiations.
Abdullah also mentioned that peace can be reached when all sides respect the opinions of each other, praised the completion of prisoners' exchange between the government and the Taliban, and thanked the United States for paving the way for the intra-Afghan talks.
"Honorable peace can only be achieved with political participation and national sovereignty. Permanent peace can bring our refugees back to their homeland. The opportunity for peace must not be missed as the war will continue and blood will be shed. We must learn from the past and reach a lasting peace, one that is lasting and honorable," Abdullah added.
The head of the government's delegation mentioned that there was no need for foreign troops to remain in Afghanistan. He added that peace in Afghanistan was important for other countries in the region and to the whole world.
The Afghan government and the Taliban have agreed to launch intra-Afghan talks on Saturday after the sides completed the prisoner exchange, which was a mandatory precondition to starting the negotiations.
