US Signs Agreement With Taliban to Withdraw Troops From Afghanistan
The US and the Taliban have signed an agreement to end an 18-year war in Afghanistan.
According to the agreement, “The Taliban will not allow any of its members, other individuals or groups, including Al Qaeda, to use the soil of Afghanistan to threaten the security of the United States and its allies.”
The agreement stipulates that the US will reduce the number of its forces in Afghanistan from 13,000 to 8,600 within the next 3-4 months, and withdraw completely in 14 months, provided the Talban keeps its commitments to prevent terrorism.
The agreement was signed in Doha by US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and the Taliban’s chief negotiator and one of its founders, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar.
Leaders from Pakistan, Qatar, Turkey, India, Indonesia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, were present at the signing, Al Jazeera added.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attended the ceremony but did not sign the agreement, NBC News noted.
In addition, the US committed to lifting US sanctions on the Taliban and working with members of the United Nations Security Council to remove sanctions against members of the Taliban within three months, NBC News added. It also committed to working with the sides to secure the release of up to 5,000 prisoners held by Afghanistan and 1,000 prisoners held by the Taliban.
In exchange, the Taliban will not use Afghan soil to launch terror attacks which threaten US security, and intra-Afghan negotiations will begin on March 10. There will also be a “permanent and comprehensive ceasefire,” Al Jazeera noted.
The site quoted a Taliban statement that said it had reached an agreement “about the termination of occupation of Afghanistan.”
“The accord about the complete withdrawal of all foreign forces from Afghanistan and never intervening in its affairs in the future is undoubtedly a great achievement,” it added.
Earlier on Saturday, the Taliban ordered all its fighters to halt fighting and “refrain from attacks.”
Pompeo said the US was “realistic” about the agreement, but saw it as “the best opportunity for peace in a generation.” Though he is still angry about the September 11, 2001 attacks, which prompted the invasion, the US was not willing to “squander” what its soldiers “have won through blood, sweat, and tears.”
NBC News also said that US Secretary of Defense mark Esper was in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Saturday to meet with President Ashraf Ghani and NATO leaders, in an effort to “further engage with the Afghan peace process.”
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg was also in Kabul on Saturday for another signing ceremony with Esper and Ghani.
